<360 


UC-NRLF 


fV 

"BROTHJONATHAN 


PACKING 

IAM>  MABKETING 

FRUITS 


Copyright,    1905 
By    The    Fruit-Grower  .  Co. 
St.  Joseph,  Mo. 


ST  JOSEPH,        MISSOURI, 


"Bro.  Jonathan" 

Trade  Mark  of  TRe  Fruit=Grower 
St.  Joseph,  Mo. 


TRe  Bro.  Jonathan  Series 

of  Booklets  on  Fruit  Subjects 


No.  1— Propagation  of  Trees  and  Plants. 

No.  2  —A  Treatise  on  Spraying. 

No.  3 — How  to  Grow  Strawberries. 

No.  4 — The  Home  Garden. 

No.  5 — Packing  and  Marketing  Fruits. 


Price,  25c  Each  BSS,' 


TRe  Set  of  Five 
Dollar 


PACKING  AND 

MARKETING 

FRUITS 


How  Fruits  Should  Be  Handled  to  Carry 

to  Market  in  Best  Condition  and 

Present   Most  Attractive 

Appearance 


By  F.  A.  WAUGH 

Professor  of  Horticulture,  Massachusetts 
Agricultural  College 


PUBLISHED    BY   THE  FRUIT-GROWER    COMPANY 
SAINT  JOSEPH,  MISSOURI 

1905 


Brother  Jonathan 
Series 


Booklet  No.  5 


Publisher's  Note 


The  author  of  this  little  book  is  Prof.  F.  A. 
Waugh,  of  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural  College, 
and  formerly  of  Kansas.  He  has  for  many  years 
made  a  special  study  of  the  fruit  markets  of  the 
United  States,  Canada  and  Europe,  and  of  all  the 
methods  employed  in  handling-  and  selling  fruit. 
He  is  also  the  author  of  a  more  extensive  work  on 
the  same  subject,  entitled  "Fruit  Harvesting,  Storing 
and  Marketing,"  published  by  the  Orange  Judd  Co., 
New  York.  We  shall  be  happy  to  supply  this  book 
to  those  who  may  desire  it  direct  from  The  Fruit- 
Grower  office  for  $1.00,  postage  prepaid,  which  is 
the  publishers'  price. 


Introductory  Remarks 

The  buying  and  selling  of  fruit  in  America  is 
largely  in  the  hands  of  commission  men,  speculator^ 
and  others  professionally  engaged  in  the  traffic,  but 
not  interested  directly  in  fruit  growing.  This  ten- 
dency to  transfer  the  commercial  part  of  the  business 
out  of  the  hands  of  the  fruit-growers  and  into  the 
hands  of  quite  another  set  of  men  will  probably  con- 
tinue to  increase  the  difference  pointed  out.  In  other 
words,  the  business  of  trading  in  fruits  belongs  less  to 
the  farmers  and  fruit-growers  than  it  does  to  the 
commission  men,  speculators,  cold  storage  men,  pro- 
fessional buyers,  transportation  men,  and  others  of 
that  class. 

It  is  hardly  necessary,  however,  to  preface  the  fol- 
lowing pages  with  an  explanation  that  they  are  not 
addressed  to  the  men  of  this  latter  class,  even  though 
they  do  have  the  largest  interest  in  fruit  marketing. 
The  fruit-grower  continues  to  have  his  interest  in  the 
matter,  too;  and  it  is  the  interest  of  the  producer  that 
The  Fruit-Grower  has  first  in  mind.  There  are  two 
other  reasons  why  the  present  author  does  not  under- 
take to  instruct  the  speculators  and  commission  men: 
First,  they  are  usually  quite  able  to  take  care  of 
themselves;  second,  the  present  scribe  has  never 
studied  their  business  from  their  own  standpoint. 

It  is  the  plain  purpose  of  this  book,  therefore,  to 
help  the  fruit-grower.  If  anything  can  be  done  to 
help  him  in  disposing  of  his  crop  at  a  profit  the 
purpose  of  this  book  shall  have  been  fully  satisfied. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  the  fruit-grower 
needs  to  study  carefully  this  business  of  fruit  mar- 
keting. It  is  one  thing  to  grow  good  fruit,  and  quite 
another  to  get  profitable  returns  from  it.  The  diffi- 
culties are  growing  constantly  larger  and  larger.  The 


6  FRUIT-GROWER;    £T.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


development  of  business  continually  introduces  new 
complications.  New  markets  have  to  be  reached. 
New  customers  have  to  be  consulted.  New  ideas  in 
transportation  are  brought  forward.  New  packages 
are  proposed  every  day.  New  schemes  are  in  sight 
everywhere.  Market  conditions  are  every  day  becom- 
ing more  and  more  complex.  Unless  one  studies  the 
subject  carefully  and  ceaselessly  he  must  soon  fall 
behind  the  times. 

The  complexity  of  the  subject  stands  as  one  of  the 
chief  reasons  why  the  fruit-grower  should  study 
deeply  into  the  fundamental  questions  underlying  the 
whole  subject  of  fruit  marketing.  Only  in  this  way 
can  he  properly  understand  the  various  and  often 
surprising  facts  which  come  to  his  acquaintance. 

A  fruit-grower,  to  be  successful  in  his  business, 
must  know  how  to  grow  good  fruit,  and  he  should  be 
able  to  do  this  at  a  minimum  cost.  It  is  often  said 
that  good  fruit  sells  itself,  and  this  is  true  to  a  cer- 
tain extent,  so  that  a  knowledge  of  fruit-growing  is  a 
first  essential  in  frui't  selling.  Yet  after  the  fruit  is 
grown  there  are  still  two  matters  which  the  fruit- 
grower ought  to  understand  in  order  to  make  his 
undertaking  a  financial  success:  First,  he  should 
have  a  broad  knowledge  of  the  general  principles 
governing  the  business  of  trading  in  fruit;  and  sec- 
ond, he  must  be  master  of  an  infinite  number  of  little 
details,  every  one  of  which  is  essential  to  complete 
success. 

A  few  of  these  little  details  can  be  set  forth  in  a 
work  like  this,  but  many  of  them  can  be  learned  by 
experience  only.  The  main  purpose  and  use  of  this 
little  text  book,  from  the  nature  of  things,  must  be  to 
set  forth  in  systematic  order  the  general  principles 
involved.  Let  us  understand  therefore,  at  the  outset, 
that  it  is  impossible  to  tell  everything  which  is 
important.  There  will  still  be  many  things  for  the 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS  7 

fruit-grower  to  learn  after  he  has  mastered  all  the 
instructions  here  given.  Still  these  instructions  are 
nqjne  the  less  necessary. 

It  is  the  plan  of  this  booklet  to  treat  the  different 
fruits  separately,  discussing  picking,  packing,  stor- 
age, etc.,  for  each.  The  apple  is  placed  first,  because 
it  is  the  most  important  of  our  American  fruits. 
Many  of  the  methods  employed  in  marketing  apples 
are  applicable  also  to  other  fruits,  so  that  in  subse- 
quent chapters  it  will  often  be  necessary  to  repeat 
statements  already  made  or  to  refer  to  what  has 
gone  before.  The  latter  alternative  will  usually  be 
adopted. 

The  index  at  the  back  of  the  book  will  doubtless 
make  it  easy  to  find  any  information  required. 

The  Fruit  Markets 

The  man  who  expects  to  grow  fruit  for  market 
ought  to  understand  something  about  the  fruit  mar- 
kets. There  are  many  different  markets,  and  they 
all  have  their  peculiarities.  For  a  proper  understand- 
ing of  the  matter  it  will  be  best  to  divide  these  mar- 
kets into  two  general  classes:  (1)  the  retail  markets, 
and  (2)  the  wholesale  markets.  In  this  country  the 
wholesale  markets  are  much  the  larger  and  absorb 
the  great  majority  of  all  fruits.  The  retail  markets 
are  numerous  and  growing,  however,  and  ought  to  be 
more  commonly  and  more  carefully  cultivated. 

There  are  great  advantages  in  selling  fruit  at  retail 
whenever  the  fruit-grower  can  do  it.  The  expenses 
of  freight,  the  charges  of  the  commission  man,  and 
the  loss  by  various  sorts  of  shrinkage  are  all  elim- 
inated. These  often  amount  to  more  than  the  initial 
price  of  the  fruit. 

In  selling  fruit  direct  to  one's  own  customers  at 
retail  one  can  cultivate  a  much  larger  list  of  vari- 
eties. Whereas  the  wholesale  grower  is  obliged  to 


8  FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

confine  himself  to  one  or  two  varieties,  like  Ben 
Davis  or  Missouri  Pippin,  the  retail  grower  can  sell 
almost  any  good  apple.  This  enables  him  to  cover  a 
much  longer  season. 

The  mistake  is  often  made  of  thinking-  that  any 
S9rt  of  fruit  can  be  sold  in  the  home  market.  When 
one  ships  apples  to  the  city  markets  one  expects  to 
send  the  best;  but  poorly  graded,  poorly  colored,  sec- 
ond class  fruit  will  go  in  a  country  store  or  with 
country  customers.  One  ought  to  remember  that  in 
these  direct  sales  he  is  held  personally  responsible  to 
an  extent  not  known  in  the  larg-e  markets.  Further- 
more the  customer  who  buys  a  lot  of  apples  at  home 
in  an  apple  country  is  entitled  to  expect  something 
good.  It  is  an  old  saying  that  the  shoe-maker's  chil- 
dren go  barefoot;  and  it  is  an  unpleasant  modern 
illustration  of  it  that  one  can  buy  better  apples  in 
New  York  than  in  the  apple  regions,  or  that  one  can 
get  better  Chicago  beef  in  London  than  in  Chicago. 
Such  things  ought  not  to  be,  and  everybody  knows 
they  ought  not.  If  one  expects  to  cultivate  his  retail 
trade  he  must  serve  his  country  customers  decently, 
and  that  means  that  they  must  have  good  goods. 

There  are  many  other  ways  of  selling  fruit  at 
retail  except  to  peddle  it  out  on  the  streets  of  one's 
home  village.  Some  men  of  enterprise  gradually 
work  up  a  list  of  city  customers  to  whom  they  ship  a 
certain  quantity  of  fruit  every  fall.  Any  right-minded 
banker  in  -Denver,  Kansas  City  or  Pittsburg  would 
sooner  have  three  barrels  of  fine  apples  fresh  from 
the  grower,  whom  he  knows,  than  to  get  the  same 
fruit  at  half  the  price  from  a  commission  house  or 
groceryman  in  his  own  city.  There  are  thousands  of 
barrels  of  apples  sold  direct  at  retail  in  this  manner 
every  fall,  and  it  is  one  of  the  best  ways  ever  devised 
of  selling  fruit.  "From  producer  to  consumer  direct" 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS  9 

has  long  been  the  dream  of  trade;  and  here  we  have 
it  in  perfection. 

Several  growers  and  packers  have  recently 
adopted  the  plan  of  selling  direct  and  securing  their 
customers  by  magazine  advertising.  Almost  all  the 
leading  magazines,  such  as  Harper's,  Scribn-er's,  etc., 
last  winter  carried  advertisements  of  growers  and 
packers  who  offered  to  send  fine  Greenings,  Baldwins 
or  Jonathans  by  express  at  $3  the  box. 

These  different  methods  of  reaching  the  consum- 
ers direct  are  coming  more  and  more  into  favor,  and 
wherever  they  can  be  operated  they  should  be  freely 
tried. 

The  wholesale  market  in  this  country  is  growing 
to  be  rather  complicated.  It  is  difficult  to  give  a 
comprehensive  sketch  of  it  in  a  small  compass. 
Briefly  we  may  say  that  the  grower  who  has  pro- 
duced a  crop  of  apples  has  several  different  methods 
open  for  disposing  of  his  crop.  The  following  are 
the  most  common: 

1.  He   may  sell  the  crop  on  the  trees  for  a  lump 
sum,    say    $750    for   the    orchard.      The    buyer    picks, 
sorts  and  handles  the  fruit. 

2.  He   may   sell  the   crop   on   the   trees   at   a  fixed 
price  per  barrel.    The  best  way  is  to  make  a  straight 
price,  say  $1.35  a  barrel  for  firsts  and  seconds,  allow- 
ing the  buyer  to  grade  them  to  suit  himself.     Some- 
times two  prices  are  made,  say  $1.65  for  firsts  and  $1 
for  seconds.     In  this  case  there  is  apt  to  be  some  dif- 
ference of  opinion  about  the  grading.     In  either  case 
the  picking  and  packing  may  be  either  at  the  expense 
of  the  buyer  or  of  the  seller,  as  may  be  agreed. 

3.  He   may  pick,   grade   and  barrel  the  fruit,   and 
sell   it   to   a  buyer   on    the   ground. 

4.  He  may   pick,    grade   and    pack    the   stock   and 
send  it  direct  to  a  commission  man,  who  sells  it  for 
what  he  can  get  and  returns  the  proceeds. 


10          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

5.  He    may    place    the    fruit    in    his    own    storage 
house  and  sell  it  out  during  the  winter  whenever  he 
thinks  the  market  most  favorable. 

6.  He  may  send   his  fruit   to   a  city  cold   storage 
house,  where  he  can  rent  space  for  30  to  50  cents  a 
barrel  for  the  season,  and  he  will  then  draw  his  fruit 
out  and  sell  it  (usually  through  a  commission  dealer) 
at  any  time  during  the  winter  when  he  thinks  best. 

7.  He  may  sell  his  fruit  on  "joint  account,"  if  he 
can  find  any  dealer  who  will  go  into  the  scheme  with 
him  .  In  this  case  the  dealer  pays  the  grower  a  cer- 
tain fixed  rate  per  barrel  at  picking  time,  which  rate 
is  considerably  less  than  the  probable  selling  price  of 
the  fruit.     It  may  be  $1  a  barrel.     Then  the  dealer 
takes  charge  of  the  fruit  in  storage  and  sells  it  off 
during  the  winter  whenever  he  has  the  best  oppor- 
tunities.   After  the  fruit  is  all  sold  the  dealer  and  the 
grower   have   a   final   settlement.      At   this   time    the 
amount  originally  paid  the  grower  is  deducted  from 
the  net  proceeds  and  the  difference  is  divided  equally 
between  the  dealer  and  the  grower.    This  method  has 
been  found  to  work  eminently  well  in  a  few   cases, 
but  it  is  not  capable  of  wide  application. 

8.  He  may  ship  his  fruit  to  a  foreign  market.     In 
the  case  of  apples   this  usually  means  Liverpool  or 
London.      These    foreign    shipments    may    be    made 
through  American   agents,   or   direct  to  salesmen   in 
the  cities  of  final  destination.    Such  shipments  should 
not  be  made   except  after   correspondence   with   the 
agents.     During  the   last  few  years   such   shipments 
have  usually  paid  fair  prices,  the  net  receipts  being 
sometimes  more  and  sometimes  less  than  would  have 
been  secured  by  selling  the  same  fruit  at  home.     The 
foreign  market,  however,  offers  a  splendid  outlet  for 
much  of  our  American  fruit  crop,  and  it  ought  to  be 
carefully  cultivated.     It  is  the  principal  market  for 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          11 


the  Canadian  crop,  especially  the  Nova  Scotia  apple 
crop. 

Every  man  must  make  his  own  choice  between 
these  various  methods  of  selling.  It  is  not  possible  to 
say  that  one  method  is  better  or  worse  than  another. 
The  greater  a  man's  knowledge  of  the  fruit  trade  and 
the  larger  his  financial  resources  the  longer  he  can 
afford  to  hold  control  of  his  own  fruit.  If  he  knows 
nothing  about  the  business  and  is  obliged  to  have 
some  money  right  off  to  buy  chewing  tobacco  or  pay 
his  taxes,  it  is  probably  better  for  him  to  sell  the 
fruit  on  the  trees  or  on  the  ground. 

Picking  Apples 

It  is  a  delicate  question  to  determine  just  when 
apples  ought  to  be-  picked.  There  are  some  reasons 
why  it  is  desirable  to  pick  as  early  as  possible.  Early 
picking  reduces  the  danger  from  wind  storms  and 
saves  considerable  loss  from  windfalls  under  all  cir- 
cumstances. On  the  other  hand,  apples  color  up  best 
when  they  are  left  comparatively  long  on  the  trees. 
Many  varieties  do  not  color  thoroughly  until  after 
the  leaves  thin  out  considerably.  Some  varieties  can 
be  left  to  advantage  long  after  the  first  frost.  This 
depends  a  good  deal,  of  course,  on  the  variety  itself 
and  its  habit  of  holding  onto  the  tree.  Northern  Spy 
and  Ben  Davis  hold  on  extremely  late,  while  Wealthy 
and  Wagener  are  apt  to  fall  as  soon  as  they  are  ripe, 
or  even  before. 

If  apples  are  to  be  sent  to  storage  another  factor 
comes  into  consideration  in  determining  the  proper 
time  for  picking.  It  used  to  be  thought  that  apples 
should  be  picked  before  they  were  mature  in  order 
to  have  them  hold  well  in  cold  storage.  The  extens- 
ive experiments  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  in 
recent  years  have  shown  that  this  idea  is  wrong. 
Nearly  all  varieties  stand  cold  storage  best  if  thor- 


12          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


oughly  ripe  and  well  colored,  but  not  overripe.  Such 
varieties  as  are  subject  to  scald  should  be  given  spe- 
cial attention  in  this  respect,  as  it  is  found  that  the 
scald  is  worse  on  apples  picked  before  maturity. 
Thoroughly  ripe  apples,  well  colored,  are  not  nearly 
so  much  subject  to  scald  as  are  green,  uncolored 
specimens. 

The  importance  of  having  the  fruit  nicely  colored 
and  rip-ened  when  picked  is  so  great  that  many  of 
the  best  growers  who  make  a  specialty  of  fancy 
grades  have  adopted  the  practice  of  picking  the 
apple  trees  over  two,  three,  or  'even  four  times.  At 
each  picking  they  take  off  such  fruit  as  is  ripe,  well 
colored,  and  up  to  size.  The  rest  of  the  apples  are 
allowed  to  hang,  and  it  is  found  that  they  will 
increase  greatly  in  size  toward  the  end  of  the  season 
and  will  color  up  and  otherwise  improve  long  after 
the  first  lot  would  have  fallen  to  the  ground.  Of 
course  this  method  of  picking  over  the  trees  several 
times  would  be  too  expensive  with  cheap  fruit  and 
with  all  poorer  grades  of  apples.  It  is  strongly  rec- 
ommended, however,  for  early  varieties  and  fancy 
grades. 

There  have  been  all  sorts  of  mechanical  pickers 
advertised,  but  none  of  them  has  ever  become  pop- 
ular. They  are  of  two  kinds.  The  first  kind  is  in- 
tended to  pick  a  single  apple  at  a  time  out  of  the 
higher  branches,  and  consists  of  some  sort  of  a 
pocket  hung  on  the  end  of  a  long  pole.  These  con- 
trivances are  too  slow  and  cumbersome  for  any  com- 
mercial work.  The  second  style  of  apple  picker 
presents  some  modification  of  the  old  practice  of 
shaking  apples  off  the  trees.  It  furnishes  some  kind 
of  a  spread  held  under  the  branches,  upon  which  the 
apples  are  shaken  down.  While  this  method  is 
cheap  enough  to  make  it  commercially  available,  it 
is  too  rough  for  the  exacting  demands  of  present-day 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          13 

business.  By  all  means  the  best  way  of  putting  up 
commercial  apples  is  to  pick  them  by  hand  from  the 
trees. 

There  is  something  of  a  knack  in  picking  apples, 
but  unfortunately  expert  apple  pickers  are  not  often 
to  be  hired.  The  fruit-grower  is  usually  obliged  to 
put  up  with  ordinary  day  labor  and  to  make  up  in 
the  carefulness  of  his  own  supervision  the  lack  of 
experience  on  the  part  of  the  pickers.  Apple  pick- 
ers usually  get  the  prevailing  day  wages,  that  is 
from  one  dollar  to  one  dollar  and  seventy-five  cents 
a  day.  Apples  are  sometimes  picked  by  the  bushel 
or  barrel,  but  this  practice  is  not  common  and  is  not 
to  be  recommended.  When  it  is  indulged  in,  the 
price  paid  is  from  eight  to  fifteen  cents  a  barrel. 
The  writer  has  recently  been  told,  on  pretty  good 
authority,  of  a  picker  who  picked  one  hundred  bar- 
rels of  apples  from  the  trees  in  one  day.  Any  such 
slam-banging  work  as  that  ought  to  be  prohibited  in 
any  well  regulated  orchard.  The  ordinary  picker 
will  pick  from  twelve  to  twenty  barrels  a  day. 

Apples  should  be  picked  with  the  stems  on  and 
not  torn  from  the  trees.  Where  the  stem  is  pulled 
out  of  the  apple,  the  skin  is  usually  broken  and  an 
opportunity  for  decay  given. 

Some  pickers  prefer  to  pick  into  a  sack  tied  over 
the  shoulder.  The  best  contrivance,  however,  is 
undoubtedly  the  swinging-bail  half-bushel  basket. 
This  is  made  in  various  styles,  usually  of  oak  or  elm 
splints.  These  baskets  are  now  used  in  such  large 
quantities  that  they  can  be  bought  at  very  reasonable 
prices.  If  fine  fruit  Is  to  be  handled  with  special 
care,  it  is  worth  while  to  have  the  baskets  padded 
inside.  Each  basket  should  be  furnished  with  a  hook 
made  by  bending  a  strong  three-eighths  inch  wire 
into  the  form  of  a  very  crooked  S.  This  can  be 
hooked  over  the  limb  of  the  tree  so  as  to  leave  the 


14          FRTJIf-GIlOWEIt,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


Swing-bail  Half  -bushel"  "Basket 


picker  free  to  use  both  hands.  When  the  picking  is 
being  done  in  large  trees  this  same  hook  allows  the 
basket  to  be  let  down  to  the  ground  by  a  strap  or 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          15 

rope,  where  it  is  emptied  by  an  assistant,  thus  mak- 
ing it  unnecessary  for  the  picker  to  climb  up  and 
down  the  tree  for  every  basketful. 

Picking  is  greatly  expedited  by  the  use  of  suitable 
ladders.  The  best  ones  are  of  two  forms.  The  first 
form  is  the  step  ladder,  which  should  always  have 
three  legs  instead  of  four.  These  step  ladders  are 
made  in  large  quantities  now  for  this  particular  kind 
of  work.  It  is  probably  cheapest  to  buy  ready-made 
ladders  if  any  considerable  number  is  -wanted.  Of 
course,  any  handy  man  can  make  one  or  two  such 
step  ladders  if  that  is  more  convenient  than  to  buy 
them. 

The  second  type  of  ladder  used  in  apple  picking 
is  adapted  for  taller  trees.  It  is  of  the  ordinary  form, 
that  is  with  two  rails.  Very  often  the  two  rails  are 
brought  together  at  the  top,  making  the  top  pointed. 
This  makes  it  easier  to  adjust  the  ladder  securely 
into  or  against  the  top  of  the  large  apple  tree.  This 
ladder  should  also  be  as  light  and  strong  as  possible. 
They  are  made  in  large  numbers  and  sold  at  low 
prices. 

Various  practices  prevail  with  regard  to  the  im- 
mediate disposal  of  apples  when  they  are  taken  from 
the  trees.  Sometimes  they  are  placed  in  piles  on 
the  ground.  Sometimes  they  are  put  into  barrels 
without  sorting  and  left  in  the  orchard;  sometimes 
they  are  put  unsorted  into  barrels  and  carried  to  the 
temporary  storage  house;  sometimes  they  are  imme- 
diately sorted,  barreled,  headed  up,  and  sent  to  stor- 
age. If  the  stock  is  going  to  cold  storage,  which  is 
now  the  customary  method,  the  last  named  plan  of 
handling  the  fruit  is  undoubtedly  the  best.  It  cer- 
tainly is  a  mistake  in  all  cases  to  leave  the  fruit  on 
the  ground  even  for  a  few  hours.  If  there  is  good 
storage  at  home  and  handy  by,  it  is  a  very  good 
practice  to  put  the  apples  into  barrels  unsorted  and 


16          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

take  them  immediately  to  the  storage  house,  where 
they  can  be  sorted  and  packed  more  at  leisure. 
Under  all  circumstances,  however,  they  ought  to  be 
put  into  as  cool  a  place  as  possible  with  the  least 
possible  delay.  In  handling  fancy  grades  of  stock  in 
barrels,  it  is  probably  best  to  pick  the  fruit,  sort, 
pack  and  head  it  up  at  once  and  put  it  immediately 
into  cold  refrigerator  cars,  sending  these  off  as  expe- 
ditiously  as  possible  to  the  cold  storage  plant.  This 
method  is  actually  practiced  on  a  large  scale  by  some 
of  the  best  growers.  There  is  no  extraordinary 
expense  in  it,  in  fact  nothing  out  of  common  except 
the  expense  of  the  refrigerator  cars,  which  has  been 
shown  to  be. -entirely  profitable  with  good  fruit. 

When  apples  are  taken  to  the  temporary  storage 
houses  without  sorting,  it  is  best  to  grade  them  over 
as  soon  as  convenient.  This  is  more  necessary  if  the 
grade  of  the  fruit  is  low.  If  there  is  considerable 
fungus,  they  should  be  sorted  at  once,  all  first-grade 
fruit  being  put  by  itself.  In  case  the  fruit  comes 
from  the  trees  in  extra  good  condition,  with  no  fun- 
gus and  very  few  culls,  there  is  not  so  much  urgency 
in  this  early  sorting.  In  general,  however,  it  is  a 
mistake  to  Leave  the  fruit  ungraded,  as  is  sometimes 
done,  up  to  the  time  when  it  is  sent  to  market, 
which  may  be  late  in  the  spring. 

Sorting  Apples 

The  grading  of  the  fruit  is  extremely  important 
from  every  point  of  view.  There  is  hardly  anything 
Which  affects  the  price  secured  more  than  this. 
Many  fine  apples  bring  outrageously  low  prices 
because  they  are  carelessly,  ignorantly,  or  deceit- 
fully graded  and  packed. 

Proper  grading  requires  good  judgment  and  con- 
siderable experience.  The  man  who  sorts  and  packs 
the  fruit  should  be  the  expert  of  the  gang.  The  man- 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          17 


ager  -can  afford  to  pay  him  good  wages,  although  as 
a  matter  of  fact  such  men  rarely  secure  more  than 
two  dollars  a  day. 

We  have  already  recommended  that  the  sorting 
be  d^ne  immediately  after  the  fruit  is  picked,  either 
in  the  field  or  in  the  temporary  storage  house.  Some 
men  spread  the  fruit  on  the  ground  for  sorting.  It 
is  a  good  deal  better  to  have  sorting  tables,  which 
should  be  three  feet  wide  and  six  to  eight  feet  long. 
They  should  be  eight  inches  deep  and  should  be  put 
on  trestles  or  legs  so  as  to  stand  about  three  feet  four 
inches  from  the  ground.  It  is  good  policy  to  have  the 
bottom  and  sides  padded  to  prevent  bruising  of  the 
fruit.  We  have  frequently  seen  the  bottoms  made 
with  slats,  the  idea  being  to  allow  the  leavers  and 
other  rubbish  to  sift  through.  This  is  not  a  good 
practical  construction.  In  the  first  place  it  weakens 
the  bottom,  and  in  the  second  place  these  slats  are 
always  inclined  to  bruise  the  fruit  more  or  less.  It 
is  easy  enough  to  dispose  of  the  rubbish  in  some 
other  way. 

On  the  table  like  that  here  descr  bed  from  two 
to  four  barrels  of  fruit  can  be  spread  out  at  once.  It 
is  desirable  to  have  a  considerable  quantity  of  fruit 
within  the  reach  of  the  man  who  is  sorting  in  order 
that  he  may  work  rapidly  and  secure  a  uniform 
grade. 

Some  of  these  sorting  tables  are  made  with  a 
chute  or  spout  at  one  end,  usually  furnished  with  a 
cloth  spout  leading  into  the  barrel,  through  which 
the  apples  are  allowed  to  run.  If  managed  with 
some  care  the  apples  can  be  handled  in  this  way 
without  severe  bruising.  In  the  judgment  of  the 
writer  it  is  much  better,  however,  to  sort  the  apples 
into  baskets.  These  should  be  of  the  kind  already 
described  for  picking.  The  half-bushel  swinging- 


18          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

bail  basket  can  be  let  down  into  the  barrel  and  the 
fruit  poured  out  with  a  minimum  of  bruising'. 

It  is  desirable  that  sorting  be  done  as  much  as 
possible  by  one  man.  Frequent  shifting  about  on 
this  job  always  gives  an  uneven  grading  of  fruit. 

The  question  of  whether  a  certain  apple  should 
be  put  into  the  first  or  into  the  second  grade  is 
largely  a  matter  of  judgment  in  the  end.  It  depends 
also  upon  the  run  of  the  lot.  If  the  apples  are  all 
running  large,  then  medium  sized  specimens  should 
be  put  among  the  seconds.  In  other  words,  it  is 
more  important  that  a  barrel  of  apples  should  be 
uniform  in  size  than  that  they  should  attain  any 
particular  size.  The  question  is  relative  rather  than 
absolute. 

Nevertheless  the  Apple  Shippers'  Association  has 
adopted  a  rule,  which  is  departed  from  when  neces- 
sary, and  which  is  enforced  in  critical  cases.  Their 
rule  is  as  follows: 

The  standard  for  size  for  No.  1  apples  shall  be 
not  less  than  2*4  inches  in  diameter,  and  shall 
include  such  varieties  as  Ben  Davis,  Willow  Twig, 
Baldwin,  Greening,  and  other  varieties  kindred  in 
size.  The  standard  for  such  varieties  as  Romanite, 
Russet,  Winesap,  Jonathan,  Missouri  Pippin,  and 
other  varieties  kindred  in  size  shall  not  be  less  than 
2-t^  inches.  And,  further,  No.  1  apples  shall  be  at 
time  of  packing  practically  free  from  the  action  of 
worms,  defacement  of  surface,  or  breaking  of  skin; 
shall  be  hand  picked  from  the  tree,  a  bright  and 
normal  color  and  shapely  form. 

No.  2  apples  shall  be  hand  picked  from  the  tree; 
shall  not  be  smaller  than  2*4  inches  in  diameter.  The 
skin  must  not  be  broken  or  the  apple  bruised.  The 
grade  must  be  faced  and  packed  with  as  much  care 
as  No.  1  fruit. 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          19 

The  Apple  "Barrel 

Before  going  on  to  see  how  apples  are  packed,  it 
will  be  best  to  stop  a  moment  to  consider  the  stand- 
ard apple  packages.  Of  these  the  barrel  stands  first. 

The  standard  American  apple  barrel  has  *.he  fol- 
lowing dimensions:  diameter  at  top,  17*4  inches; 
circumference  at  middle,  64  inches;  length  of  staves, 
28%  inches.  This  is  known  everywhere  as  the  stand- 
ard apple  barrel,  or  the  one  hundred  quart  barrel. 

In  Nova  Scotia,  and  occasionally  in  Ontario,  an- 
other barrel  is  used  considerably  different  from  the 
one  just  described.  It  is  just  a  trifle  longer,  but  the 
most  distinctive  difference  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
staves  are  straighter.  The  barrel  is  made  nearly 
cylindrical.  The  dimensions  of  the  Nova  Scotia  bar- 
rel are:  diameter  of  top,  17*/£  inches;  diameter  at 
middle,  19  inches;  length  of  staves,  29  inches.  The 
two  barrels  may  be  more  readily  compared  in  the 
following  table: 

COMPARISON    OF    NOVA    SCOTIA    AND    AMERI- 
CAN APPLE  BARRELS 

Diameter  Diameter  at  Length  of 

at  Top  Middle           Staves  Capacity 

American 17^  20%                28H  100  Quarts 

Nova  Scotia 17V2  19                   29  96  Quarts 

The  American  apple  barrel  is  a  stronger  package 
than  the  Nova  Scotia  barrel  and  will  stand  rough 
handling,  such  as  loading  on  and  off  cars  and  trucks, 
better  than  the  straight  stave  barrel.  When  it 
comes  to  shipping  by  boat  across  the  Atlantic,  how- 
ever, the  Nova  Scotia  barrel  has  the  call.  This  is 
because  the  longer  straighter  barrel,  when  stowed 
on  its  «ide  on  shipboard,  does  not  rock  so  much  as 
the  barrel  with  bended  staves.  It  therefore  keeps 
the  fruit  in  better  condition  in  going  across. 


20          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

There  is,  of  course,  a  certain  advantage  to  the 
growei  ij.  using  a  ninety-six  quart  barrel  in  place  of 
a  one  hundred  quart  barrel.  Four  quarts  of  apples 
are  worth  saving.  At  this  rate  a  man  would  gain 
one  barrel  in  twenty-five,  which  would  be  a  saving 
of  four  ^er  cent.  In  most  factories  any  adjustment 
which  accomplishes  a  saving  of  four  per  cent  is  con- 
sidered well  worth  making.  A  smaller  barrel  fur- 
nishes an  even  three  bushels,  which  is  all  the  pur- 
chaser is  really  entitled  to.  The  question  of  adopting 
the  ninety-six  quart  barrel  in  the  United  States  has 
often"  been  discussed,  but  the  proposition  has  never 
made  much  headway.  It  will  doubtless  be  a  long 
time  before  we  ever  come  to  it. 

Apple  barrels  are  made  out  of  all  sorts  of  lumber, 
usually  from  such  timber  as  is  not  very  valuable  for 
other  purposes.  Elm  is  used  to  a  considerable  extent 
and  makes  a  good  barrel.  Hickory  used  to  be  used, 
but  it  is  now  too  expensive.  Hemlock  and  spruce 
are  used  to  some  extent;  so  is  cheap  pine.  Chestnut 
and  birch  are  occasionally  worked  up  into  barrels. 
The  hoops  are  usually  made  out  of  the  same  stock, 
although  occasionally  timber  is  worked  up  into  hoop 
stock  which  is  not  fit  for  anything  else.  In  some 
parts  of  the  country  split  hoops  are  used,  in  which 
case  young  birches  and  large  alders  are  worked  up. 

The  best  custom  for  one  buying  apple  barrels  is 
to  get  them  knocked  down,  staves,  heads  and  hoops 
separate.  It  is  best,  of  course,  to  buy  this  stock  in 
car  lots.  It  is  then  delivered  on  the  farm  of  the 
grower  to  be  worked  up  into  barrels  on  the  premises. 
A  small  cooper  shop  can  be  easily  rigged  up.  In  the 
apple  growing  sections  itinerant  coopers  go  about 
from  farm  to  farm  during  the  summer  and  autumn 
working  this  stock  up  into  barrels.  A  good  handy 
man  on  the  farm,  with  a  little  practice,  can  learn  to 
put  up  apple  barrels  himself.  A  small  kit  of  tools  is 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          21 


required,  but  nothing  very  elaborate  or  expensive. 
The  apple  barrels  made  up  in  this  way  cost  all  the 
way  from  fifteen  to  thirty-five  cents  each,  depending 
very  largely,  of  course,  on  the  original  cost  of  the 
stock.  During  the  last  two  years  stock  has  been 
very  scarce  and  high,  owing,  it  is  said,  to  the  opera- 
tion of  a  barrel  trust.  At  present  the  production  of 
barrel  stock  seems  to  be  catching  up  with  the  de- 
mand, and  the  tendency  is  toward  easier  prices. 

In  many  places  it  is  customary  to  use  second- 
hand barrels  for  packing  apples.  The  common  flour 
barrels  are  the  ones  usually  impressed  into  this  ser- 
vice. A  common  flour  barrel  has  the  same  capacity 
and  dimensions  as  the  standard  apple  barrel,  and 
answers  the  purpose  fairly  well.  However,  a  second- 
hand barrel  can  never  be  made  to  look  as  good  as 
new.  In  many  cases  dirty  barrels  are  bought  and 
are  used  without  Droper  cleaning.  In  such  cases 
they  detract  greatly  from  the  appearance  of  the 
fruit,  and  the  commission  man  knocks  off  on  the 
price  accordingly.  The  apple  grower  who  has  a  con- 
siderable crop  to  handle  cannot  afford  to  bother 
with  flour  barrels.  He  should  by  all  means  use 
fresh-made  apple  barrels. 

Apple  "Boxes 

During  recent  years  there  has  been  a  good  deal  of 
discussion  as  to  the  merits  of  the  apple  box.  Many 
growers  believe  that  there  is  a  future  for  apples 
packed  in  this  way.  While  the  use  of  the  box  has 
been  strenuously  objected  to  in  some  quarters,  espe- 
cially by  the  commission  men  and  fruit  dealers,  it 
has  not  always  be-en  clear  that  their  advice  was  dis- 
interested. In  fact,  it  is  common  knowledge  that  in 
some  cases  they  have  bought  apples  in  barrels  and 
repacked  them  in  boxes,  making  quite  a  profit  for 
themselves  thereby.  The  writer  feels  justified  in 


22          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

relating  here  an  item  of  personal  experience.  Two 
years  ago  we  had  some  Gravenstein,  Mclntosh  and 
Fameuse  apples  ready  for  market  in  October.  We 
wrote  to  the  commission  men  with  whom  we  were 
doing  business  at  that  time — a  thoroughly  reliable 
firm,  by  the  way — asking  them  if  they  would  advise 
us  shipping  in  boxes.  Their  reply  was  about  as  fol- 
lows: "The  fruit  is  yours.  You  can  do  as  you  please 
with  it.  Our  advice  would  be,  however,  not  to  use 
any  boxes."  Inasmuch  as  we  were  anxious  to  learn 
how  the  fruit  would  handle,  and  as  we  had  the  boxes 
on  hand,  we  divided  the  shipment,  sending  one-half 
in  barrels  and  one-half  in  boxes.  The  fruit  was  all 
of  the  same  grade,  but  that  in  boxes  was  wrapp-ed  in 
paper.  The  whole  lot  was  sent  to  the  commission 
man  whose  advice  has  just  been  quoted.  When  the 
returns  came  back  we  found  that  the  barrels  had 
sold  for  $2  each,  which  was  the  top  quotation  at  the 
time;  but  the  boxes  had  also  sold  for  $2  each.  In 
other  words,  one  bushel  of  apples  nicely  wrapped' 
and  packed  in  boxes  brought  just  as  much  as  three 
bushels  of  the  same  fruit  in  a  barrel. 

The  three  boxes  cost  45  cents.  A  barrel  at  that 
time  was  worth  35  to  40  cents.  A  little  more  time 
was  consumed  in  packing  the  three  boxes  than  in 
packing  one  barrel.  The  cost  of  the  paper  wrapping 
may  be  fairly  disregarded. 

The  great  advantage  of  the  box  lies  not  so  much 
in  the  fact  that  it  displays  the  fruit  to  better  advant- 
age, for  it  does  not  always  do  so,  but  in  the  fact  that 
it  presents  a  quantity  of  fruit  which  many  consum- 
ers prefer  to  purchase.  There  are  very  few  city 
families  who  find  it  convenient  or  economical  to  buy 
a  barrel  at  one  time.  The  quantity  is  more  than  the 
family  will  consume  without  waste,  and  there  is  no 
place  in  the  house  where  there  is  room  for  the  barrel 
to  stand.  A  bushel  of  apples,  however,  is  not  too 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          23 

much  for  the  smallest  family,  and  a  neat  square  box 
can  be  easily  stowed  even  in  a  New  York  City  flat. 

Experience  has  demonstrated  that  the  apple  box 
has  come  to  stay  .  It  is  bound  to  be  used,  and  its  use 
will  be  extended.  This  does  not  mean,  however,  that 
it  will  supplant  the  apple  barrel.  It  certainly  will 
not  do  so,  at  least  for  many  years  to  come.  The 
apple  box  must  be  used  only  for  fancy  grades  of 
!ruit.  This  is  not  so  much  because  the  package  costs 
more,  as  because  the  expense  of  selling  it  is  some- 
what greater  and  because  the  person  buying  a  pack- 
age of  this  kind  expects  it  to  contain  something 
?ood.  If  the  purchaser  buys  a  box  of  apples  and 
:inds  the  fruit  inferior,  his  resentment  is  much 
greater  than  if  he  has  been  cheated  on  a  barrel  of 
apples.  Most  purchasers  have  grown  accustomed  to 
being  more  or  less  swindled  on  apples  in  barrels. 

A  great  many  different  boxes  have  been  proposed. 
These  have  been  of  different  sizes,  different  forms, 
and  differently  constructed.  We  seem  to  be  settling 
down  rather  rapidly,  however,  to  a  bushel  box  of 
standard  size  and  construction.  This  box,  which  is 
now  the  most  common,  has  the  following  inside  di- 
mensions: 10x11x20  inches.  This  gives  a  capacity  of 
2,200  cubic  inches.  A  standard  bushel  contains 
2150.42  cubic  inches,  so  that  the  box  furnishes  a  little 
over  the  standard  struck  bushel  (not  a  heaping 
bushel). 

A  somewhat  larger  box  is  rather  commonly  used 
in  Canada,  but  it  is  not  to  be  recommended. 

These  boxes  are  made  with  the  ends  of  three- 
quarter  inch  stuff,  and  with  the  top,  bottom  and 
sides  of  lighter  stuff.  These  last  may  run  anywhere 
from  one-quarter  to  one-half  inch,  but  three-eighths- 
inch  stuff  is  about  right. 

There  have  been  some  experiments  recently  with 
smaller  boxes,  especially  with  half  bushel  sizes.  The 


24          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

writer  feels  confident  that  something  of  this  kind 
will  eventually  find  a  place  in  the  market,  but  noth- 
ing yet  has  been  accomplished  which  can  be  given 
general  recommendation. 

The  bushel  basket  has  been  used  to  some  extent, 
especially  in  the  Chicago  market,  for  apples,  and  has 
some  advantages.  It  is  easy  to  handle  and  pleases 
the  customer.  Such  bushel  baskets  with  covers  cost 
about  $12  a  hundred.  Half  bushel  baskets  of  the 
same  form  cost  from  $10  to  $11  a  hundred. 

Packing  Apples 

A  man  who  packs  apples  should  have  some  expe- 
rience, and  the  judgment  born  of  it,  in  order  to  do 
his  work  well.  Next  to  the  man  who  grades  the 
fruit,  the  one  who  packs  it  has  the  greatest  respon- 
sibility. Many  a  sale  of  good  fruit  has  been  spoiled 
by  poor  packing  .  When  fruit  is  to  be  shipped  some 
distance,  as  across  the  ocean,  the  packing  must  be 
irreproachable.  If  barrels  are  poorly  packed  the 
fruit  works  loose,  becomes  bruised,  and  in  many 
instances  quite  worthless. 

In  packing  a  barrel  with  apples  the  barrel  is 
placed  on  its  head  with  the  bottom  out.  Some  good 
clean  apples  are  put  in  for  "facers."  It  is  best  to 
pour  in  20  to  30  such  apples  at  the  start — just  about 
enough  to  cover  the  head.  The  packer  then  places 
these  in  'even  circular  rows,  beginning  around  the 
outside  and  working  in,  setting  each  specimen  with 
the  stem  down.  It  is  important  to  see  that  the  apples 
in  this  first  tier — the  facers — fit  snugly  together. 
Then  a  second  tier  is  put  on,  facing  stems  down  like 
the  first.  Now  the  real  filling  of  the  barrel  begins 
The  sorted  fruit,  preferably  placed  in  the  swing-bai 
half-bushel  basket  already  recommended,  is  pourec 
in.  This  basket  can  be  let  down  into  the  barrel  anc 
emptied  with  the  least  possible  disturbance  of  the 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          25 

faced  layers.  After  each  half  bushel  of  loose  fruit 
has  been  poured  in  the  barrel  should  be  vigorously 
haken.  This  shaking  is  essential.  It  settles  the 
fruit  together,  and  prevents  the  otherwise  disastrous 
oosening  when  the  barrel  is  shipped.  When  the 
barrel  is  practically  full  the  top  layer  (which  will  be 
the  bottom  layer  after  the  barrel  is  packed),  is  faced 
stems  out  in  as  neat  a  manner  as  possible.  When 
the  apples  are  all  in  and  this  last  layer  of  facers  on, 
the  fruit  should  stand  up  two  or  three  inches  above 
the  top  of  the  barrel. 

The  head  Cor  what  is  really  the  bottom  of  the 
barrel)  is  then  put  in  place.  A  barrel  press  is  now 
necessary.  There  are  two  types  of  barrel  press  in 
common  use — the  screw  and  the  lever  press.  The 
writer  prefers  the  latter.  With  either  one  the  head- 
Tig  proceeds  in  the  same  manner.  The  upper  hoops 
of  the  barrel  are  slightly  loosened.  The  head  is 
pressed  down  even  with  the  chines,  the  hoops  are 
driven  home,  and  some  sort  of  cleat  is  tacked  in  to 
lelp  hold  the  head  in  place. 

The  barrel  is  then  marked  with  the  stencil  of  the 

rower  or  packer,  and  with  the  name  of  the  variety 

rivl   grade.      Sometimes    it    is   also    marked   with    the 

no  me  of  the  dealer  to  whom  it  is  to  be  shipped.     It 

,3  then  ready  for  delivery,   either  to  the  buyer  or  to 

the  storage  house. 

In  packing  apples  in  boxes  the  fruit  is  all  put  in 
by  hand,  especially  when  it  is  to  be  wrapped  in 
paper.  Care  must  be  taken  to  get  the  boxes  full.  It 
3  «even  harder  to  make  a  box  of  apples  full  and 
ight  than  a  barrel.  Some  shippers  cover  the  packed 
fruit  with  paper  and  make  it  solid  by  putting  in  a 
luantity  of  excelsior  next  to  the  cover.  This  is  prac- 
:iced  more  especially  when  s-ending  boxes  across  the 
Dcean,  but  is  not  to  be  generally  recommended. 

When    apples    are    nicely    packed    in    boxes    they 


26 


FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


should  go  in  in  rows  and  tiers  just  as  oranges  are 
packed.  On  the  Pacific  Coast,  where  all  these  tricks 
are  better  understood  than  on  this  side  of  the  Great 
Divide,  they  do  this  think  excellently  well.  Mr.  E.  C. 
Diokerson  of  North  Yakima,  Wash.,  in  the  October, 


Fig.  1. 

1904,    number    of   The    Fruit-Grower    told    how    they 
do  it  there.     Here  is  his   description: 

There    are   some    thirty   or   forty   sizes   of   apples, 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS 


27 


covering"  all  the  varieties  and  their  various  sizes  or 
grades,  which  can  be  packed  into  the  standard  apple 
box  in  thirty  or  forty  different  styles.  For  commer- 
cial packing  and  shipping  requirements  most  of  the 


Fig.  2. 

ordinary  grades  of  apples  grown  can  be  handled  in 
seven  or  eight  different  styles  of  packing,  of  which 
six  different  styles  are  shown  and  described  below. 
Figure   1   shows  a  four-row  box  of  apples.     This 


28 


FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


box  is  the  largest  sized  apple  that  can  be  packed  into 
the  four-row  grade.  The  box  contains  just  ninety- 
six  apples.  There  are  nine  grades  of  the  four-row 
apple,  the  smaller  of  which  is  shown  in  Figure  2  and 


Fig.  3. 

contains  128  apples.  Every  layer  in  this  box  of  128 
is  packed  in  the  same  manner  as  that  shown  by  the 
top  layer.  In  the  box  containing  ninety-six  the  width 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          29 

is  too  great  to  allow  of  their  cheeks  being  all  turned 
up,  so  in  the  layers  below,  according  to  the  size  of 
the  apples,  one  or  more  of  the  layers  are  placed 
stem  down. 

Figure    3    shows   the    largest    apples    that    can   be 
packed   into   the   five-row   grade.      The    box   contains 


Fig.  4. 

just  140  specimens.  This  grade  cannot  be  packed 
with  a  long  and  narrow  apple,  as  there  must  be  four 
layers  in  this  box. 


30          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

Figure  4  shows  the  smallest  five-row  apple  that 
can  be  packed  in  this  grade.  The  box  contains  five 
layers  and  250  apples.  All  the  layers  in  this  grade 
are  placed  in  the  same  manner  as  shown  in  the  top 


Fig.  5. 

layer.  This  grade  cannot  be  packed  with  a  long 
apple.  The  five-row  grades,  which  are  sometimes 
called  straight  fives,  are  found  in  twenty- three  dif- 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS 


31 


ferent  grades  reaching  from  140  down  to  250  speci- 
mens in  each  box. 

Figure  5   shows  an  odd  grade  of  five-row  apples. 
Without  this  style  of  a  pack  it  is  almost  impossible 


Fig.  6. 

to  pack  all  the  apples  from  your  orchard  and  have 
them  all  packed  neatly  and  correctly.  The  box 
shown  in  Figure  5  contains  213  apples.  In  this 


32          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

grade  the  center  of  every  apple  in  the  third  and  fifth 
layers  conies  directly  over  the  center  of  its  corres- 
ponding apple  in  the  first  layer.  The  center  of  every 
apple  in  the  fourth  layer  conies  directly  over  the 
center  of  its  mate  in  the  second  layer.  There  are 
three  grades  of  this  style.  In  one  the  first  row  will 
contain  eight  apples,  the  second  seven,  the  third  eight 
again  and  then  seven  and  eight,  making  a  total  of  188 
apples  in  the  box.  In  the  second  grade  of  this  style, 
the  first,  last  and  every  row  will  contain  eight  apples 
with  the  box  holding  just  200  specimens.  In  the 
third  grade  of  this  style  the  first,  third  and  fifth  rows 
will  contain  nine  apples,  while  the  second  and  fourth 
will  contain  only  eight,  making  the  box  hold  213 
apples. 

The  sixth  and  last  style  of  packing  shown  is  rep- 
resented by  Figure  6.  This  box  will  contain  seventy- 
two  apples.  Only  the  first  of  its  four  layers  is 
shown.  The  core  of  all  apples  in  the  third  layer  will 
come  directly  over  their  mates  in  the  first  layer,  but 
not  over  the  cores  of  any  apples  in  the  second  layer. 

Nothing  has  been  said  of  the  various  grades  of 
six-row  apples,  as  they  are  too  small  to  offer  to  the 
apple-eating  public,  though  some  pack  and  ship  them 
to  the  penny  fruit  stands.  The  top  layers  of  the 
apples  in  any  of  the  grades  must  be  high  enough 
that  when  the  cover  is  nailed  on,  the  cover  will  touch 
each  and  every  apple  jn  that  layer  and  touch  it  hard 
enough  to  compel  every  apple  in  the  box  to  remain 
in  touch  with  its  neighbor  apple  in  the  box,  the  walls 
of  the  box  itself,  or  both,  as  the  case  may  be. 
throughout  its  entire  period  of  transportation. 

When  a  box  is  finished  packed  the  apples  at  the 
end  of  the  box  must  not  be  more  than  an  inch  above 
the  top  of  the  box,  while  the  center  of  the  box  should 
be  from  one  to  two  inches  higher,  so  as  to  make  a 
beautiful  curve  for  the  top  of  the  box,  which  helps 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          33 

to  hold  the  apples  in  the  box  tog-ether  more  snugly. 
Though  every  person  has  not  the  gift  for  the  making 
of  a  good  apple  packer,  most  of  them  after  a  careful 
reading-  of  the  above  can  after  more  or  less  practice 
succeed  in  packing  neatly  and  rapidly.  But  remem- 
ber practice  makes  perfect.  In  box  apple  packing 
rapidity  and  perfection  do  not  go  hand  in  hand. 

Apple  Storage 

The  storage  of  apples  presents  one  of  the  largest 
factors  in  the  modern  apple  business,  because  the. 
bulk  of  the  trade  is  with  winter  fruit,  which  is, 
always  stored  for  a  greater  or  less  period.  Even 
from  the  first  there  has  been  some  storage.  In  olden 
days  apples  used  to  be  stored  in  piles  in  the  orchard, 
in  pits  in  the  ground,  in  bulk  in  the  hay  mow,  in  bins 
in  the  cellar,  and  in  various  other  ways.  Nearly  all 
of  these  old-fashioned  ways  are  still  practiced  to 
some  extent,  although  they  have  very  little  influence 
on  the  modern  apple  business. 

Following  these  crude  methods  of  storage  there 
came  into  practice  a  few  years  ago  different  methods 
of  handling  apples  in  specially  made  storage  houses. 
At  the  beginning  these  were  seldom  cr  never  sup- 
plied with  artificial  refrigeration.  The  theory  of 
construction  was  simply  to  provide  a  well  insulated 
wall  and  then  to  cool  down  the  storage  chamber  by 
ventilation.  Such  houses  or  storage  compartments 
are  no  wall  classed  together  under  the  name  "com- 
mon storage."  "Common  storage"  is  distinguished 
from  "cold  storage,"  the  latter  referring  to  such 
houses  or  chambers  as  are  supplied  with  artificial 
refrigeration. 

There  has  been  a  strong  tendency  in  the  last  few 
years  to  do  away  with  the  common  storage  tn  favor 
of  the  genuine  cold  storage.  Great  improvements 
have  undoubtedly  been  made  in  the  process  of  cold 


34          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

storage,  and  the  matter  is  much  better  understood 
than  it  was  a  few  years  ago.  Such  storage  is  there- 
fore both  safer  and  cheaper.  Nevertheless  the  com- 
mon storage  has  not  altogether  gone  out  of  use.  One 
of  the  largest  dealers  in  New  York  State — a  man  of 
wide  practical  experience  in  all  systems  of  storage — 
recently  told  the  writer  that  he  would  as  soon  have 
apples  in  common  storage  as  in  the  best  cold  storage. 


Fig.  7 — Mr.   Green's  Storage  House 

This  is  perhaps  an  extreme  view,  but  it  shows  that 
the  difference  between  the  two  sys.tems  is  not  so 
gioat  as  we  have  sometimes  been  led  to  believe. 

The  construction  of  a  house  for  common  storage 
may  best  be  understood  by  examining  one  of  ttfo  con- 
crete cases.  Figure  7  represents  the  storage  house 
of  Mr.  Charles  L.  Green,  East  Wilton,  Main4,  which 
was  built  in  1903.  This  building  is  30x40  f6et,  with 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          35 

12  foot  posts  upon  the  sills.  It  also  has  a  cellar  or 
lower  story  dug  out  of  a  gravel  bank  and  facing 
toward  the  south.  There  is  a  large  door  to  this  base- 
ment story  so  that  a  load  of  apples  can  be  backed  in 
without  unloading.  The  cellar  walls  are  built  of 
quarried  granite  laid  solid  in  cement.  The  underpin- 
ning is  of  granite  laid  in  Portland  cement  and  lined 
with  brick  .  The  basement  will  hold  one  thousand 
barrels,  and  the  first  floor  will  hold  approximately 
the  same  amount. 

The  building  is  sheathed  on  the  outside  with 
matched  hemlock  covered  with  thick  sheathing  paper 
and  this  in  turn  covered  with  clapboards  and  well 
painted.  The  studding  were  also  sheathed  again 
inside  and  then  a  new  course  of  studding  set  around 
inside  of  the  first  and  sheathed  again.  This  gives  two 
dead  air  spaces  and  three  matched  sheathings  besides 
the  paper,  clapboards  and  paint.  The  floor  between 
the  storage  room  and  cellar  is  double,  with  hemlock 
for  the  under  course  and  matched  birch  on  top  with 
heavy  paper  between.  Both  storage  rooms  have 
double  doors  and  windows  with  matched  board 
blinds  inside.  There  is  an  attic  room  which  will 
accommodate  twelve  hundred  empty  barrels.  The 
building  cost  twelve  hundred  dollars. 

Another  very  excellent  building  for  the  common 
storage  of  apples  which  has  been  frequently  described 
and  which  is  certainly  a  model  of  its  kind  is  that 
shown  in  figure  8,  and  owned  by  Mr.  T.  L.  Kinney, 
South  Hero,  Vermont.  This  house  was  built  in  1888 
and  stands  30x50  feet  on  the  ground.  It  has  a  base- 
ment which  will  accommodate  1,000  barrels,  and  the 
main  floor  will  receive  an  equal  number.  There  is 
an  attic  for  the  storage  of  empty  barrels,  cooper's 
stock,  etc.  The  walls  are  constructed  in  the  follow- 
ing manner:  The  studding  are  3x4  inches.  On  the 
outside  is  a  course  of  one-inch  matched  pine  covered 


36 


FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


with  building  paper  and  again  with  clapboards.  On 
the  sides  of  the  studs  small  furring  strips  are  run 
in.  Upon  these  a  lath  and  plaster  coat  is  made  from 
stud  to  stud.  This  produces  a  double  dead  air  space. 
On  the  inside  of  the  stud  is  another  one-inch  course 


Fig.  8 — Mr.  T.  Lt.  Kinney's  Storage  House 

of  matched  pine  covered  by  building  paper  and  by 
one-half-inch  boards  all  over  the  inside.  There  are 
glass  windows  and  heavy  matched  board  blinds.  This 
house  cost  fifteen  hundred  dollars  and  has  been 
entirely  successful. 

Various  other  houses  more  or  less  like  the  two 
here  described  have  been  built  in  all  parts  of  the 
country.  So  far  as  the  writer  knows  these  have 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          37 

proved  uniformly  successful  in  the  northern  states 
where  they  have  been  well  built  and  intelligently 
managed.  In  the  southern  states  they  are  less  satis- 
factory, and  in  any  case  they  are  unreliable  when 
mismanaged. 

The  two  important  things  to  be  looked  after  in 
building  these  houses  for  common  storage  are  (1) 
insulation,  and  (2)  ventilation. 

Insulation  is  provided  as  described  above  by  mak- 
ing very  tight  walls  with  dead  air  spaces.  Formerly 
it  was  recommended  to  fill  the  spaces  with  sawdust 
or  some  similar  material.  This  is  now  known  to  be 
inadvisable. 

Ventilation  should  be  secured  by  having  a  reason- 
able number  of  windows  which  may  be  easily  opened 
ana  shut.  These  should  be  near  the  floor  or  else 
special  ventilators  should  be  provided  at  the  floor 
level,  opening  in  all  sides  of  the  building.  An  ade- 
quate discharge  for  warm  air  must  also  be  provided 
for  from  the  upper  part  of  the  storage  room.  This  is 
usually  secured  by  ventilating  shafts  running  from 
the  storage  room  to  the  roof.  A  circulation  of  air 
can  be  secured  at  critical  times  with  this  construc- 
tion by  lighting  a  lamp  and  placing  it  on  a  small 
shelf  in  the  ventilating  shaft.  The  windows  of  such 
storage  houses  are  opened  at  night  when  the  tem- 
perature is  low  and  are  closed  early  in  the  morning 
before  the  thermometer  goes  up.  In  this  way  a 
storage  house  can  be  thoroughly  cooled  off  and  can 
be  held  at  a  very  uniform  temperature  when  once  it 
is  cooled  .  Of  course  the  cooling  is  not  so  positive  as 
with  artificial  refrigeration,  nor  can  it  be  so  quickly 
accomplished. 

The  construction  of  cold  storage  houses  with  arti- 
ficial refrigeration  is  rather  a  complicated  matter, 
which  even  the  refrigeration  engineers  do  not  under- 
stand any  too  well.  It  would  be  going  too  far  to  take 


38          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

up  that  matter  here,  especially  as  very  few  apple 
growers  ever  undertake  to  build  such  storage  houses. 

The  ordinary  practice  in  dealing  with  cold  storage 
is  for  the  grower  or  buyer  of  the  apples  to  send  them 
to  a  refrigerating  house  in  the  city.  Space  in  these 
houses  is  rented.  The  ordinary  price  is  from  thirty 
to  fifty  cents  a  barrel  for  the  season.  A  certain  tem- 
perature is  guaranteed.  The  apples  may  then  be 
removed  whenever  the  owner  desires. 

It  Should  be  clearly  understood  by  everyone  who 
undertakes  the  cold  storage  of  apples  that  the  func- 
tion of  the  storage  house  is  merely  to  maintain  a 
uniform  temperature  of  a  desired  degree  throughout 
the  compartment  and  during  the  storage  season. 
Cold  storage  will  not  make  number  one  fruit  out 
of  number  two;  nor  will  it  altogether  prevent  the 
natural  process  of  deterioration.  It  simply  checks 
the  ordinary  processes  of  decay.  It  appears  that 
many  persons  have  expected  too  much  of  cold  storage 
in  the  past. 

While  it  is  not  necessary  for  the  apple  grower  to 
know  about  the  different  systems  of  mechanical 
refrigeration,  it  is,  nevertheless,  a  matter  of  consid- 
erable interest  to  him.  Storage  rooms  are  sometimes 
cooled  directly  with  ice,  although  the  direct  cooling 
systems  are  not  in  very  common  use.  Usually  the 
rooms  are  cooled  by  the  evaporation  of  the  liquid 
gases.  This  gas  is  allowed  to  evaporate  in  or  near 
the  storage  room  and  during  its  evaporation  it  takes 
up  the  heat  from  the  room  or  fruit  stored  in  it, 
thereby  lowering  the  temperature. 

The  following  description  of  the  methods  usually 
employed  is  taken  from  Mr.  G.  Harold  Powell's  bul- 
letin entitled  "The  Apple  in  Cold  Storage." 

The  refrigerating  gases  generally  used  are  anhy- 
drous ammonia,  sulphuric  acid,  and  carbonic  acid 
(also  known  as  carbon  anhydrid  and  carbon  dioxid). 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          39 

The  cold  temperature  in  the  warehouses  is  usually 
produced  by  either  of  two  methods,  commonly  known 
as  the  compression  and  the  absorption  systems. 

The  compression  system  takes  its  name  from  the 
fact  that  the  refrigerating  gas — whether  ammonia, 
carbonic  acid,  or  sulphuric  acid — is  first  compressed 
in  a  machine  called  a  compressor.  Heat  is  generated 
by  the  compression;  the  gas  is  then  cooled  and  con- 
densed in  pipes  or  coils  called  the  condenser,  either 
immersed  in  water  or  having  water  running  over 
them,  and  this  converts  the  gas  into  a  liquid.  The 
liquefied  gas  then  passes  an  expansion  valve  to  pipes 
or  coils  called  the  refrigerator  cooling  coils  or  cooler, 
where  it  is  evaporated  by  the  heat  which  is  with- 
drawn from  the  surroundings.  The  gas  formed  by 
the  evaporation  of  the  liquid  returns  to  the  com- 
pressor, is  again  condensed,  then  re-evaporated,  and 
the  cycle  of  refrigeration  is  repeated  over  and  over. 

In  the  absorption  system  the  gas  is  obtained  by 
heating  strong  aqua  ammonia  in  a  still,  thereby 
driving  off  the  ammonia  gas.  The  gas  is  then  re- 
duced in  a  condenser  to  a  liquid  in  a  manner  sim- 
ilar to  the  compression  system.  The  liquefied  am- 
monia produces  refrigeration  by  evaporating  in  the 
cooling  coils,  and  the  gas  is  then  absorbed  by  weak 
aqua  ammonia  in  coils  called  an  absorber.  The 
resulting  strong  liquor  is  then  pumped  back  to  the 
still.  The  cycle  of  refrigeration  is  repeated  contin- 
uously, and  consists,  first,  in  the  generation  of  a  gas 
by  heating  strong  aqua  ammonia  in  a  still;  second, 
in  condensing  the  gas  which  is  deposited  from  the 
water  to  a  liquid  in  the  condenser  coils;  third,  in  its 
evaporation  to  a  gas  in  the  cooling  or  refrigerator 
coils;  fourth,  in  its  absorption  by  the  weak  aqua 
ammonia  in  the  absorber;  and  fifth,  the  ammonia 
liquor  is  piped  to  the  still  and  redistilled. 

There  are  three  general  methods  of  producing  the 


40          FRUIT-GKOWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

desired  temperatures  in  cold-storage  rooms,  and 
these  are  known  as  the  direct-expansion,  the  brine- 
circulating,  and  the  indirect  or  air-circulating  sys- 
tems. All  three  systems  may  be  used  in  a  cold-stor- 
age plant,  and  in  a  given  room  or  compartment  the 
air-circulating  system  is  sometimes  used  in  connec- 
tion with  the  brine  or  the  direct-expansion  systems. 

In  the  direct-expansion  system  the  liquefied  gas 
evaporates  directly  in  the  cooling  refrigerator  coils 
or  pipes  which  are  placed  in  the  refrigerator  rooms. 
The  heat  used  in  the  evaporation  of  the  gas  is 
absorbed  from  the  room  or  from  its  contents,  and  the 
temperature  is  thereby  reduced.  The  gas  then 
returns  to  the  compressor  in  the  compression  sys- 
tem, or  to  the  absorber  in  the  absorption  system,  and 
after  being  distilled  in  the  latter  case  begins  the 
refrigerating  cycle  anew. 

In  the  brine-circulating  system,  the  liquefied  gas, 
instead  of  evaporating  directly  in  coils  in  the  storage 
room,  evaporates  in  pipes  surrounded  by  brine,  or  in 
a  brine  cooler.  The  heat  used  in  the  evaporation  of 
the  gas  is  absorbed  from  the  brine  rather  than  from 
the  room  and  its  contents,  as  in  the  direct-expansion 
system.  The  cold  brine  is  then  pumped  to  coils  in 
the  storage  room  and  the  heat  of  the  room  and  its 
contents  is  absorbed  by  the  cold  brine.  The  warm 
brine  is  then  returned  to  the  tank  or  cooler  from 
which  it  started  and  is  recooled,  while  the  gas 
returns  to  the  condenser  or  to  the  absorber  to  renew 
the  cycle  of  refrigeration. 

In  the  indirect  or  air-circulating  system  the  air 
in  a  well-insulated  room,  which  is  sometimes  called 
a  coil  room  or  a  "bunker  room,"  is  first  cooled,  either 
by  the  direct-expansion  or  by  the  brine-circulating 
system.  The  cold  air  of  the  coil  room  is  then  forced 
through  ducts  to  the  storage  rooms.  After  passing 
through  the  storage  rooms  it  is  returned  by  ducts  to 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          41 


the  coil  room  to  be  recooled  and  purified  and  to 
begin  the  circuit  anew. 

There  are  many  modifications  in  the  details  of 
these  systems  when  applied  to  storage  houses,  .but  as 
this  publication  does  not  deal  primarily  with  the 
engineering  side  of  refrigeration  it  is  the  purpose  to 
set  forth  approximately  the  fundamental  principles 
on  which  the  most  common  storage  systems  are 
based  rather  than  to  discuss  their  application  or  their 
respective  merits. 

Extensive  experiments  in  the  cold  storage  of  fruit, 
especially  apples,  carried  on  by  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture  under  the  supervision  of 
Mr.  G.  Harold  Powell,  have  added  materially  to  our 
knowledge  of  the  subject  in  recent  years.  These 
experiments  have  strongly  emphasized  the  import- 
ance of  immediate  storage.  The  fruit  should  be  put 
into  the  storage  room  with  the  least  possible  delay 
after  picking.  Indeed,  we  know  of  one  large  apple 
grower  who  has  cooled  refrigerator  cars  standing  on 
the  railroad  track  waiting  before  picking  begins. 
Just  as  fast  as  the  fruit  can  be  sorted  it  is  barreled 
and  hauled  directly  into  these  refrigerator  cars. 
These  cars  are  run  right  into  the  refrigerating  house 
to  be  unloaded,  so  that  the  apples  are  out  of  cold 
storage  for  only  a  few  hours  at  most,  from  the  time 
they  are  picked  until  they  are  sold. 

It  used  to  be  thought  that  a  temperature  of  40  to 
42  degrees  was  best  for  storing  apples,  but  recent 
experience  has  shown  conclusively  that  the  temper- 
ature in  the  storage  chamber  should  be  31  or  32 
degrees,  and  that  this  should  be  maintained  with 
the  least  possible  variation  throughout  the  storage 
season. 

There  is  a  diversity  of  custom  with  respect  to  put- 

.  ting   up    the   apples   for    storage.      Usually    they    are 

stored  in  barrels,  but  the  reason  for  this  is  often  that 


42          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


the  fruit  handles  more  easily  rather  than  that  men 
have  any  notion  that  the  apples  will  keep  better 
when  put  up  in  that  way.  In  fact,  a  good  many  fruit- 
growers who  practice  home  storage  of  apples  habit- 
ually store  the  fruit  in  bins.  This  is  not  the  best 
method  .  In  fact,  it  may  fairly  be  questioned  whether 
storage  in  bins  is  ever  good  practice.  If  fruit  is  to 
be  stored  for  a  short  time  only  it  is  better  to  have 
it  in  a  small  package.  If  the  package  is  open  or 
ventilated,  so  much  the  better.  The  cold  air  reaches 
all  parts  of  the  receptacle  and  cools  off  all  the  fruit. 
If  apples  are  to  remain  some  time  in  storage,  how- 
ever, it  is  better  to  have  them  in  closed  packages. 
Probably  the  best  that  can  be  done  is  to  have  them 
headed  up  in  barrels.  In  open  packages  the  fruit  is 
liable  to  be  injured  by  wilting. 

Wrapping  of  the  fruit  in  papers  as  it  is  put  into 
the  package  nearly  always  helps  it  to  keep  better.  It 
extends  the  life  of  apples  in  storage,  under  favorable 
conditions,  a  month  or  more. 

A  word  ought  to  be  said  in  this  connection  with 
regard  to  the  scald.  This  is  a  malady  which  appears 
badly  on  stored  fruit  sometimes,  especially  in  certain 
varieties,  such  as  Rhode  Island  Greening.  It  seems 
to  show  worse  on  fruit  that  is  picked  before  it  is  well 
colored  and  thoroughly  ripe.  A  warm  temperature 
in  the  storage  room  also  tends  to  promote  the  devel- 
opment of  the  scald. 

Peaches 

It  requires  exceedingly  nice  judgment  to  know 
just  when  to  pick  a  peach  for  market.  For  eating 
out  of  hand  a  peach  should  be  picked  early  in  the 
morning,  just  about  sunrise,  of  that  day  when  it  is  so 
ripe  that  it  would  fall  to  the  ground  if  left  till  noon. 
Unfortunately  this  good,  though  somewhat  imprac-. 
ticable,  rule  cannot  be  applied  in  picking  peaches  for 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          43 


market.  Especially  when  peaches  have  to  be  shipped 
a  thousand  miles  or  more,  and  must  lie  in  the  pack- 
ages some  ten  days  or  two  weeks  between  the  orchard 
and  the  table  where  they  are  eaten,  it  is  manifestly 
impossible  to  ripen  them  thoroughly  on  the  trees. 
The  ideal,  of  course,  is  to  leave  them  on  the  trees 
just  as  long  as  possible,  and  still  get  them  to  the 
consumer  without  prejudice.  This  means  that  the 
nearer  the  market  the  riper  the  fruit  may  be  allowed 
to  become,  while  the  farther  away  is  the  market  the 
greener  the  fruit  must  be  picked. 

It  is  undeniable  that  mistakes  are  made  every  year 
on  both  sides.  Some  fruit  is  picked  too  soft  and 
some  is  sent  to  market  too  green.  The  consumers, 
at  least,  see  more  of  the  latter  mistake,  and  it  seems 
to  be  fair  to  urge  on  shippers  at  the  present  day  the 
propriety  of  ripening  their  peaches  better  before 
shipping.  Nothing  but  long,  and  probably  expens- 
ive, experience  can  determine  just  what  stage  of  ma- 
turity is  best.  This  varies  also  with  different  varieties 
and  with  the  weather.  Some  varieties,  like  Elberta, 
can  be  allowed  to  ripen  considerably  further  than 
other  softer  varieties,  like  Carman.  In  hot,  muggy 
weather  the  fruit  has  to  be  picked  greener  to  pre- 
vent the  spread  of  rot. 

The  fruit  should  be  picked  as  early  in  the  morn- 
ing as  possible.  This  is  a  good  rule  anywhere.  It  is 
especially  important  for  fruit  which  is  to  stand  long 
shipment. 

The  half-bushel  basket  with  swinging  handle  is 
best  for  picking  peaches.  There  is  hardly  any  excep- 
tion to  this  statement  . 

Peach  pickers  nearly  always  work  by  the  day.  If 
the  picking  is  to  be  done  by  the  basket  the  price  will 
have  to  be  agreed  on  in  each  case.  There  is  no  recogr- 


44          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


Georgia  Peach  Carrier 

nized  price  for  this  work,  like,  there  is  for  picking 
strawberries  in  the  strawberry  sections. 

There  are  several  different  packages  regularly 
used  for  peaches,  but  three  types  are  much  the  most 
common.  These  are  as  follows: 

The  Georgia  carrier,  or  six-basket  crate.  This 
crate  holds  six  four-quart  baskets.  The  baskets  are 
made  of  light  veneer  and  are  without  handles.  Three 
of  these  side  by  side,  cover  the  bottom  of  the  light 
slat  crate.  A  light  slat  staging  is  laid  on  top  of  the 
three  bottom  baskets  as  soon  as  they  are  put  in,  and 
three  more  baskets  go  on  top.  The  cover  Is  then 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          45 

nailed  or  stapled  on,  the  crate  is  marked  with  the 
name  of  the  variety  and  grade,  and  the  package  is 
ready  for  the  car. 

The  Jersey  basket.  This  is  a  slat  basket  made  in 
the  form  of  the  inverted  frustum  of  a  cone.  In 
other  words,  it  is  a  round  basket  with  a  flat  bottom, 
wider  at  the  top  than  at  the  bottom.  These  baskets 
are  made  in  various  sizes,  from  8  quarts  to  32  quarts. 
The  16-quart  size  is  probably  the  best,  and  is  most 
used.  The  baskets  are  sometimes  covered  with  slat 
covers,  but  oftener  are  simply  covered  over  with 


Jersey  Peach  Basket 

mosquito  netting.  Occasionally  fancy  peaches  are 
packed  in  10-quart,  14-quart  or  16-quart  Jersey  bas- 
kets, and  these  are  put  up  by  twos  in  "pony"  crates. 
In  some  sections  of  the  country,  notably  West  Vir- 
ginia, this  package  is  rather  popular.  The  writer 
confesses  himself  unable  to  see  anything  really  prac- 
tical in  it. 

The  Climax,  or  Michigan  basket.    This  is  the  third 
form  of  the  peach  basket.     It  closely  resembles  the 


46          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


popular  climax  grape  basket.  It  is  made  of  veneer, 
with  a  stiff  handle.  These  are  used  in  various  sizes, 
but  the  8-lb.  and  the  10-lb.  sizes  are  much  the  com- 
monest. These  baskets  are  sometimes  covered  with 
slat  tops,  but  oftener  with  mosquito  netting.  This 
package  has  the  advantage  of  going  direct  to  the  con- 
sumer with  the  least  possible  trouble  to  him.  It  is  a 
more  expensive  package  to  handle  than  either  of  the 
others. 


Climax  Peach  Basket 

Peaches  are  graded  according  to  size  and  color. 
All  peaches  of  any  basket  should  be  of  the  same  size, 
and  all  first-grade  peaches  should  be  well  colored. 
Two  or  three  grades  are  made,  as  the  character  of 
the  fruit  may  require  or  the  fancy  of  the  shipper 
dictate. 

The  fruit  is  usually  graded  in  a  packing  shed, 
whither  it  is  brought  as  fast  as  picked.  In  the  shed 
it  should  be  poured  out  on  narrow  tables  for  sorting. 
These  ought  to  be  padded  to  prevent  bruising  of  the 
fruit.  If  several  packers  are  to  work  together 
the  tables  should  be  divided  into  sections  of  conveni- 
ent length.  The  tables  usually  slant  toward  the 
packers,  which  helps  to  roll  the  fruit  toward  them, 
and  which  also  gives  them  a  better  view  of  the  fruit. 
Considerable  skill  is  required  to  sort  and  pack 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          47 

peaches  rapidly  and  accurately,  and  well  trained 
packers  receive  good  wages. 

Nowadays,  when  peaches  are  to  be  shipped  any 
distance,  they  are  usually  forwarded  in  refrigerator 
cars.  This  is  especially  the  practice  in  Georgia, 
Texas  and  California.  Good  refrigerator  car  service 
is  now  almost  a  necessity  to  the  peach  business,  and 
has  been  the  means  of  extending  both  the  area  of 
peach  growing  and  the  period  of  consumption  very 
considerably. 

Peaches  may  also  be  kept  for  a  certain  time  in 
cold  storage.  Powell's  experiments  have  shown  that 
firm,  well-colored  fruit  will  keep  from  two  to  three 
weeks  in  a  temperature  of  32  degrees.  It  is  possible 
to  keep  peaches  even  longer  than  this  under  excep- 
tionally favorable  conditions,  but  for  commercial  pur- 
poses even  two  weeks'  storage  is  hardly  to  be  gen- 
erally recommended.  Storage  will  often  help,  how- 
ever, to  tide  over  a  temporary  glut  in  the  market; 
and  such  stora.ge  certainly  furnishes  a  material  addi- 
tion to  our  equipment  for  handling  the  peach  crop. 

Plums 

Plums  ripen  through  a  long  season.  This  fact 
presents  a  certain  difficulty  in  picking  and  shipping 
them.  For  home  use  plums  should  be  allowed  to 
hang  on  the  trees  as  long  as  possible.  They  should 
be  thoroughly  ripe  when  picked.  Even  for  shipping 
to  market  certain  varieties  are  frequently  picked  too 
green.  This  is  apt  to  be  the  case  with  the  Damsons, 
German  Prune,  Fellenberg  and  similar  varieties, 
which  take  on  a  heavy  color  long  before  they  are 
really  mature.  On  the  other  hand,  some  varieties 
are  best  picked  for  market  at  a  period  more  or  less  in 
advance  of  maturity.  The  Burbank  plum  is  an  ex- 
ample.' This  variety  can  be  picked  a  week  before  it 
is  ripe,  and  will  then  mature  in  a  satisfactory  condi- 


48          FRUIT-GROWER/  ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


tion  in  a  storage  House  or  in  a  package.  This  plan 
of  picking  before  the  plums  are  fully  ripe  may  often 
be  resorted  to  with  great  advantage  when  plums  are 
retting  badly.  In  this  way  a  considerable  portion  of 
the  crop  may  often  be  saved  from  rot. 

Plums  should  be  picked  wHh  the  stems  on,  when- 
ever that  is  possible.  Many  varieties,  however,  do 
riot  hold  to  the  stems.  In  such  cases  the  removal  of 
stems  at  picking  time  does  no  harm  except  that  it 
may  injure  the  general  appearance  of  the  faced  fruit 
to  a  limited  degree. 

Plums  should  be  picked  in  the  early  morning  if 
possible,  while  they  are  cool,  and  should  be  trans- 
ferred at  once  to  storage  or  to  a  cool  place.  If  they 
are  to  be  shipped  to  market  they  should  be  graded, 
packed,  and  sent  off  as  expeditiously  as  possible. 

A  good  many  growers  make  a  great  mistake  by 
not  grading  plums.  It  is  customary  with  many  fruit 
men,  who  are  otherwise  careful  with  such  things,  to 
send  plums  to  market  just  as  they  come  from  the 
tree.  Now  the  plum  is  essentially  fancy  fruit,  and 
requires  such  special  attentions  as  are  always  due  a 
fancy  article.  Plums  should  not  only  be  graded,  but 
the  best  ones,  at  least  when  packed  in  small  pack- 
ages, should  be  carefully  faced.  In  some  cases  it  is 
even  best  to  wrap  the  individual  fruits  in  paper. 

There  is  no  standard  package  for  plums.  Each 
grower  will  choose  his  own  package  with  reference 
to  the  fruit  he  has  to  ship  and  the  demands  of  his 
market.  The  best  California  plums  are  usually  sent 
to  market  in  a  special  square  box  of  wood  veneer 
holding  about  two  quarts.  Many  of  the  eastern 
growers  have  found  the  common  quart  box  used  for 
strawberries  to  be  the  most  satisfactory  for  plums. 
The  writer  has  used  with  much  satisfaction  the  3-lb. 
bail-less  grape  basket.  The  4 -quart  bail-less  basket, 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          49 


such  as  is  used  in  Georgia  peach  carriers,  is  also 
entirely  satisfactory  for  shipping-  plums.  These  three 
packages  last  named  may  be  conveniently  crated  in 
the  ordinary  strawberry  crate,  and  this  makes  a  con- 
venient and  good  package  for  shipment.  Other 
packages  which  have  been  used  for  plums  are  the 
5  and  10-lb.  Climax  grape  basket  with  stiff  handles; 
diamond  splint  basket  in  various  sizes,  and  the  Jer- 
sey peach  basket,  especially  in  the  8,  12,  and  16-qt. 
sizes.  For  a  nearby  retail  market  for  plums  of  ordi- 
nary quality  the  writer  prefers  the  16-qt.  Jersey 
peach  basket.  For  consignment  to  city  markets,  at 
least  in  the  eastern  states,  the  best  results  are  se- 
cured with  small  packages,  down  to  one  quart, 
packed  in  small  crates.  Packages  holding  one-half 
bushel  or  less  seem  to  find  the  most  favor. 

Plums  are  seldom  held  in  cold  storage;  but  in  any 
case  where  a  delay  in  marketing  is  desirable  the  ben- 
efits of  cold  storage  may  be  adopted.  The  length 
of  time  which  plums  will  keep  in  cold  storage  varies 
greatly.  If  they  are  soft,  over-ripe,  and  affected  with 
rot,  it  is  hardly  worth  while  to  store  them  at  all.  On 
the  other  hand,  such  varieties  as  Fell-enburg,  Brad- 
shaw,  Grand  Duke,  etc.,  when  in  good  condition, 
would  doubtless  keep  without  serious  deterioration 
from  one  to  two  months  in  good  storage. 

We  have  never  known  of  plums  being  shipped  in 
carlots  to  distant  markets.  We  have  seen  Mr.  Hale, 
however,  sending  partial  carloads  in  the  same  car 
with  peaches  from  his  Georgia  orchard  to  New  York. 
In  such  cases  plums  should  be  given  the  benefits  of 
the  refrigerator  car  service,  just  as  peaches  are. 

Quinces 

Quinces  should  not  be  picked  until  they  are  ripe 
and  well  colored.  This  direction  seems  so  obvious 
that  one  would  hardly  believe  how  often  it  is  disre- 


50          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

garded.  Green,  unripe  quinces  are  about  as  unat- 
tractive as  anything  that  can  be  bought  on  a  fruit 
stand.  In  order  to  get  the  fruit  in  a  suitable  condi- 
tion for  selling,  it  is  often  necessary  to  pick  over  the 
trees  two  or  three  times.  Such  extra  pickings  are 
well  worth  while. 

When  the  fruit  is  picked,  it  is  immediately  sorted, 
packed,  and  sent  to  storage  or  market.  Long  storage 
is  seldom  profitable,  since  the  demand  for  quinces 
comes  nearly  all  at  the  time  of  the  quince  harvest. 

The  fruit  should  be  very  carefully  graded  since  the 
market  for  quinces  is  always  a  fastidious  one.  Speci- 
mens which  are  at  all  bruised  or  soiled  by  fungus 
should  be  discarded  and  the  remaining  specimens 
graded  according  to  size.  The  discarded  fruit  is  not 
worthless,  however.  It  makes  excellent  jelly,  and 
is  good  even  for  preserving  and  canning.  Of  course, 
it  will  have  to  be  sold  at  a  lower  price  than  first- 
grade  fruit,  but  it  will  still  bring  a  good  revenue 
and  will  not  damage  the  sale  of  the  first-grade  stuff. 

It  has  been  practiced  in  past  years  to  ship  quinces 
in  apple  barrels.  Half  barrels  have  sometimes  been 
used.  Neither  of  these  packages  is  satisfactory.  Both 
should  be  discarded.  Quinces  should  always  be  sold 
in  a  small  package.  Twenty-pound  baskets  have 
been  used  by  some  growers  with  considerable  suc- 
cess. The  16-qt.  Jersey  peach  basket  has  been  found 
satisfactory,  especially  where  long  shipments  were 
not  involved.  In  shipping  any  distance  the  bushel 
box  one*  of  the  best  packages.  It  has  always  been 
our  experience  further  that  it  pays  well  to  wrap 
good  quinces  in  paper.  This  fruit  shows  very  badly 
the  effect  of  any  bruise,  and  the  paper  largely  pre- 
vents bruising. 

The  quince  has  often  proved  to  be  one  of  the  most 
profitable  fruits.  The  demand  for  it,  however,  is 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          51 

uncertain.     No   man   should   undertake   to   make   hi? 
fortune  on  quinces  unless  he  is  up  to  the  tricks. 

Pears 

Pears  are  very  often  picked  before  they  are  thor- 
oughly ripe.  In  fact,  this  is  the  customary  way.  It 
is  a  question  whether  this  custom  is  well  founded  or 
not,  but  nevertheless  such  has  long  been  the  prac- 
tice. Some  late  dessert  varieties  may  doubtless  best 
be  handled  by  picking  them  fairly  early  and  putting 
them  in  a  dark  place  to  ripen.  The  somewhat  com- 
mon practice  of  picking  Kieffer  underripe  and  send- 
ing to  storage  with  the  expectation  of  ripening  there 
is  not  so  defensible.  The  experiments  carried  on  by 
Powell  show  that  Kieffer  may  be  picked  during  a 
considerable  season,  at  least  three  weeks  in  Dela- 
ware and  Maryland.  When  pears  are  sent  to  storage, 
in  any  case  they  should  be  handled  very  carefully 
and  should  be  stored  as  soon  as  possible  after 
picking. 

The  pear  is  essentially,  and  in  most  cases  prac- 
tically, a  fancy  fruit,  and  is  to  be  handled  as  such. 
The  practice  which  was  common  a  few  years  ago  of 
sending  Bartlett,  Duchess,  Anjou,  Sheldon,  Winter 
Nelis,  and  similar  varieties  to  market  in  apple  bar- 
rels is  wrong.  Fortunately  during  recent  years  it 
has  been  largely  discontinued.  Pears  have  sometimes 
been  sent  to  market  in  baskets.  The  diamond  splint 
baskets  have  been  used,  also  Climax  baskets,  and  even 
more  commonly  the  New  Jersey  peach  basket.  Such 
packages,  however,  are  not  logical  ones  for  pears. 
Although  it  has  not  been  very  extensively  used,  the 
bushel  box  is  probably  the  best  pear  package  under 
ordinary  circumstances.  The  fruit  should  be  care- 
fully packed  in  these,  usually  each  specimen  being 
wrapped  in  paper.  For  fancy  fruit  half  bushel  boxes 


52          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


would  be  even  better,  although  the  market  is  not 
accustomed  to  them. 

Pears  will  keep  for  a  considerable  time  in  cold 
storage.  The  length  of  practicable  and  profitable 
storage  of  course  depends  very  largely  on  conditions, 
especially  on  the  quality  and  condition  of  the  fruit 
and  upon  the  variety.  Kieffer  and  Bartlett  will  keep 
well  until  after  Christmas  in  good  storage.  The  best 
temperature  for  holding  pears  seems  to  be  32 
degrees. 

The  prices  received  for  pears  vary  immensely. 
They  run  from  nothing  at  all  up  to  $3  a  dozen  for 
fancy  fruit.  Every  one  must  have  remarked  that 
eastern  markets  are  never  supplied  with  good  dessert 
pears.  The  bulk  of  the  fruit  stand  trade  is  supplied 
with  California  stock,  which  is  never  attractive  to 
eastern  consumers.  It  is  a  rarity  to  see  good  home- 
grown pears  offered  in  any  of  the  markets  east  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  On  the  face  of  it,  this  looks 
as  though  there  was  a  good  opportunity  to  make 
some  money  in  pear  culture.  The  men  who  have  the 
soil  and  climate  adapted  to  it  ought  to  try  it. 

Cherries 

In  California,  and  in  a  very  few  places  in  the 
eastern  states,  sweet  cherries  are  grown  for  market. 
These  are  handled  in  a  manner  quite  different  from 
the  methods  employed  with  sour  cherries. 

These  sweet  cherries  are  always  a  dessert  deli- 
cacy. Frequently  they  are  destined  to  be  eaten  out 
of  hand.  It  is  expected,  therefore,  that  they  will  be 
sold  in  small  quantities  only.  Thus  they  are  put  up 
in  small  lots  and  in  fancy  packages,  and  every  effort 
is  spent  to  make  them  look  as  attractive  as  possible. 
They  are  for  what  is  known  as  the  fruit  stand  trade. 

It  is  a  curious  fact  worth  noting-  that  sweet  cher- 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          53 

ries  are  sold  in  essentially  the  same  way  on  the  con- 
tinent of  Europe.  Whenever  during  the  cherry  sea- 
son a  train  stops  at  almost  any  way  station  in  France, 
Switzerland  or  southern-  Germany,  girls  and  women 
come  crowding  around  with  little  baskets  or  paper 
cones  filled  with  ripe  sweet  cherries.  These  are  sold 
to  the  passengers  on  the  train  at  prices  usually  about 
equal  to  15  or  20  cents  a  pound.  The  sweet  cherries 
are  sold  in  all  the  city  markets  of  Germany,  France 
and  Switzerland  at  retail  in  the  same  way.  In  the 
handling  of  no  other  fruit  ar-a  the  markets  of  con- 
tinental Europe  and  of  North  America  so  much  alike 
as  in  the  selling  of  sweet  cherries. 

The  California  cherries,  which  are  the  commonest 
of  the  sw^eet  cherries  in  our  American  markets,  now 
usually  come  in  small  shallow  wooden  boxes  holding 
three  or  four  pounds.  The  cherries  are  nicely  sorted 
and  are  placed  in  these  boxes  in  tiers  and  rows  in 
exact  geometrical  order.  This  gives  them  a  very 
showry  appearance,  especially  when  varieties  of  divers 
colors  are  worked  together  into  some  sort  of  pattern. 

Sweet  cherries  from  the  eastern  states  are  usually 
sent  to  market  in  quart  strawberry  boxes.  While 
this  is  a  good  way,  it  is  not  so  good  as  the  California 
method,  and  it  is  a  question  whether  even  the  eastern 
growers  of  sweet  cherries  would  not  find  the  more 
expensive  packages  and  the  more  elaborate  methods 
of  packing  somewhat  more  profitable. 

Sour  cherries,  like  Morello,  Richmond  and  Mont- 
morency,  are  more  commonly  grown  in  the  eastern 
states,  the  central  states  and  in  Canada.  Still  the 
market  for  this  luscious  fruit  is  not  by  any  means 
half  supplied.  The  present  practice  is  to  send  these 
sour  cherries  to  market  in  quart  strawberry  boxes 
crated,  just  as  strawberries  are  shipped.  While  the 
present  conditions  of  under-supply  prevail  this 
method  is  very  good.  It  may  be  worth  considering, 


54          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

however,  whether  the  use  of  Climax  baskets  in  5  or 
even  8-lb.  sizes  would  not  please  many  customers. 
The  fact  is  that  the  best  buyers  of  sour  cherries  want 
them  for  canning  or  preserving",  not  for  immediate 
use  as  dessert.  Such  customers  always  want  as 
much  as  five  or  -eight  pounds,  and  for  them  the  Cli- 
max basket  would  be  handier  and  more  attractive 
than  the  quart  strawberry  cup.  If  the  time  ever 
comes  when  the  supply  catches  up  with  the  demand, 
as  nearly  as  it  has  in  the  marketing  of  apples,  for 
instance,  we  shall  surely  see  larger  packages  used 
for  sour  cherries. 

Strawberries 

Whenever  I  see  a  great  public  economist  (general 
manager  to  the  government  by  his  own  appointment) 
telling  how  to  regulate  the  trusts,  how  to  handle  the 
national  currency,  how  to  control  all  transportation 
matters,  and  how  to  reform  things  generally,  I 
always  think  what  fun  it  would  be  to  see  him  trying 
to  run  a  gang  of  strawberry  pickers.  In  many  ways 
it  is  harder  to  handle  a  large  crop  of  strawberries 
than  it  is  to  run  the  government  At  any  rate  I  am 
convinced  that  some  of  the  men  who  are  in  the 
strawberry  business  are  smarter  than  some  of  the 
men  who  are  in  Congress. 

One  of  the  most  serious  problems  in  the  straw- 
berry business  is  that  of  securing  a  suitable  force  of 
pickers.  In  the  southern  states  growers  naturally 
depend  largely  on  negro  labor.  In  the  northern 
states  women  and  children  are  looked  to  for  the 
principal  help.  Near  factory  towns  such  help  is 
usually  most  abundant,  and  such  places  are  often 
chosen  on  that  account  for  commercial  strawberry 
growing.  In  some  places  Italian  pickers  are  used; 
in  other  places  colonies  of  Polanders  serve  the  end; 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          55 

but  always  and  everywhere  one  must  foresee  this 
peculiar  labor  problem  before  he  goes  extensively 
into  the  cultivation  of  strawberries. 

Help  of  the  kind  here  discussed  is  naturally  and 
necessarily  unsatisfactory.  The  wandering  bands  of 
negroes  who  follow  the  picking  season  from  South 
Carolina  to  New  Jersey  are  seldom  the  best  men  and 
women  of  their  color.  In  many  towns  it  is  the 
accepted  rule  that  special  policemen  must  be  put  on 
as  soon  as  the  strawberry  pickers  appear.  The 
Italians  and  Polanders  who  go  about  picking  straw- 
berries are  only  less  nomadic  and  irresponsible  than 
the  negroes.  It  has  been  found  absolutely  necessary 
in  many  places  to  adopt  the  rule  that  no  picker  shall 
be  paid  even  a  part  of  his  or  her  wage  until  the  end 
of  the  picking  season.  If  a  grower  should  be  so  kind- 
hearted  or  crazy  as  to  pay  his  pickers  on  the  first 
Saturday  night  of  the  season  many  of  them  would 
immediately  get  drunk  on  the  money  and  all  of  them 
would  move  on  to  some  other  place,  leaving  him 
without  any  pickers  on  Monday  morning. 

Intelligent  girls  of  16  to  60  years  old  are  said 
to  make  the  best  pickers,  especially  American  or 
French  girls.  Some  growers  regard  proper  picking 
of  so  much  importance  that  they  take  special  pains 
to  select  only  the  best  pickers.  Usually  such  men 
pay  wages  somewhat  higher  than  the  average,  or 
offer  other  inducements.  One  grower  of  my  ac- 
quaintance, besides  paying  good  wages,  gives  a  big 
strawberry  supper  at  the  end  of  the  season,  at  which 
his  pickers  are  his  guests.  These  strawberry  suppers 
are  said  to  be  a  howling  success,  and  a  picker  would 
work  a  month  in  the  rain  rather  than  miss  the  sea- 
son's fete. 

Picking  is  usually  piece  work,  and  pickers  receive 
from  1  to  2  cents  a  quart.  The  average  is  about  1J/2 


56          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


cents.  In  the  south  the  pay  is  sometimes  as  low  as 
y2  to  §4  cents  a  Quart. 

Various  methods  have  been  tried  of  keeping 
account  of  the  pickers'  work,  but  the  one  now  almost 
universally  adopted  is  the  punch-card  system.  Each 
picker  is  provided  with  a  punch-card.  When 
a  picker  has  a  certain  number  of  baskets  filled 
with  fruit  he  delivers  them  to  the  foreman,  and 
the  foreman  punches  the  picker's  card  with  the  num- 
ber picked.  The  picker  keeps  these  cards  till  the  day, 
of  settlement,  in  most  cases,  and  the  grower  pays 
what  these  punched  cards  call  for.  The  great  ad- 
vantage of  this  system  is  that  it  leaves  the  picker  in 
sole  charge  of  the  evidence  of  his  work,  and  thus 
prevents  any  quarrels  over  the  amount  of  fruit 
picked. 

A  similar  plan  requires  two  of  these  cards,  and 
both  are  punched  at  one  operation.  Thus  the  picker 
and  the  foreman  each  has  a  record. 

Strawberries  are  almost  always  picked  into  the 
quart  baskets  in  which  they  are  sold.  In  fields 
where  the  fruit  is  sorted  before  being  sent  to  market 
this  is  still  the  practice,  the  quart  baskets  being  the 
most  convenient  receptacle  for  picking  and  measur- 
ing the  crop.  When  berries  are  sorted  they  are  sim- 
ply poured  out  of  the  boxes  and  sorted  back  into 
them  again. 

It  is  customary  and  advisable  to  provide  each 
picker  with  a  small  tray  holding  six  baskets  of  fruit. 
This  tray  has  a  light  bail  and  four  short  legs.  Such 
trays  can  be  made  for  about  5  to  7  cents  each,  or  can 
be  bought  ready-made  of  dealers  in  fruit  packages. 

We  have  referred  above  to  the  sorting  of  the 
fruit.  Many  growers  practice  this  as  a  regular  thing. 
Probably  a  greater  number  do  not.  The  question  of 
whether  it  will  pay  to  sort  or  not  must  be  settled  by 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          57 

every  grower  for  himself,  and  can  be  determined  in 
a  given  case  only  by  test.  If  there  is  an  accessible 
market  where  an  extra  price  can  be  secured  for 
a  fancy  product,  then  grading-  the  fruit  will  usually 
pay.  If  there  is  not,  then  grading  is  almost  certainly 
a  waste  of  effort.  It  is  a  noteworthy  fact,  however, 
that  many  of  the  best  growers  find  that  it  pays 
them  well  to  grade  their  strawberries,  putting  the 
best  ones  by  themselves  and  facing  up  the  baskets 
in  attractive  fashion. 

The  Strawberry  Package 

Strawberries  are  nearly  always  sold  in  quart 
boxes,  baskets  or  cups.  These  are  made  of  wood 
veneer  or  of  paper.  The  waxed  paper  baskets  are 
very  attractive  for  a  local  trade,  but  do  not  ship  so 
well  as  strong  wooden  boxes.  These  quart  boxes  are 
made  in  four  sizes,  viz.:  (1)  "full  quarts,"  (2)  "stand- 
ard quarts,"  (3)  "short  quarts,"  and  (4)  "skin 
quarts."  It  is  rather  a  remarkable  commentary  on 
the  business  that  these  terms,  "short  quarts"  and 
"skin  quarts,"  should  be  regularly  used  in  the  trade. 
The  moral  aspect  of  this  question  has  often  been  dis- 
cussed, but  we  believe  it  has  never  been  fully  ascer- 
tained whether  the  fruit-grower,  the  buyer  or  the 
consumer  will  have  to  suffer  for  it  In  the  hereafter. 
Of  the  four  sizes  named  the  "standard  quarts"  are 
in  commonest  use,  though  some  markets  and  some 
growers  prefer  the  "short  quarts." 

Pint  boxes  are  sometimes  used  for  very  fancy 
fruit  or  for  long  shipments.  Fruit  naturally  carries 
better  the  smaller  the  package.  But  the  pint  pack- 
age for  strawberries  is  a  very  small  item  in  the  trade 
as  a  whole. 

The  quart  boxes  are  always  shipped  to  market 
in  crates.  Standard  crates  hold  either  24,  32,  48  or 


58          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 


60  quarts.  The  intermediate  sizes  are  most  in  de- 
mand. For  fancy  fruit  or  long  shipments  preference 
is  usually  given  to  the  smaller  crates,  though  this 
preference  is  not  without  exception.  Some  growers 
of  great  experience  say  that  the  60-qt.  crate  is  best 
for  -express  shipping;  and  the  reason  given  is  that, 
while  an  express  messenger  can  throw  a  24-qt. 
crate  half  way  across  the  platform,  it  requires  two 
men  to  lift  a  60-qt.  crate.  The  heavy  package  there- 
fore gets  the  most  careful  handling. 

Strawberries  are  largely  shipped  to  commission 
merchants,  just  as  other  fruits  are  consigned.  The 
very  perishable  nature  of  the  fruit,  however,  makes 
this  method  risky,  so  that  as  many  growers  as  can 
do  so  prefer  to  depend  on  private  agents  or  to  sell 
direct  to  some  buyer.  In  the  large  strawberry  cen- 
ters, like  Ridgley,  Md.,  or  Oswego,  N.  Y.,  buyers 
always  appear  in  numbers  and  bid  for  the  crop  as  it 
is  hauled  to  the  railroad  stations  by  the  growers. 
Sometimes  one  method  is  best  for  the  grower;  some- 
times another  is.  It  all  depends.  The  only  gener- 
alization which  can  fairly  be  made  is  that  this  deli- 
cate fruit  should  be  handled  as  promptly  as  possible 
and  with  the  least  possible  hitch  between  grower  and 
consumer.  For  this  reason  direct  retail  sales  must 
always  be  the  most  satisfactory  way  of  handling 
strawberries;  and  the  best  growers  will  always  seek 
this  method  of  sale,  or  will  come  as  near  to  it  as 
their  curcumstances  will  allow. 

The  prices  realized  for  the  fruit  vary  immensely 
• — perhaps  more  than  with  any  other  kind  of  fruit. 
Hothouse  berries  often  bring  $1  a  quart — sometimes 
twice  or  three  times  that  much.  The  first  berries 
from  Florida  nearly  always  sell  in  northern  markets 
at  50  cents  a  quart  and  upwards.  On  the  other  hand, 
growers  in  Maryland  and  Delaware  at  the  rush  sea- 
son, are  sometimes  compelled  to  accept  3  to  5  cents 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          59 


a  quart,  or  even  less.  The  usual  retail  price  in 
northern  markets  is  10  to  15  cents  a  quart,  and  grow- 
ers realize  usually  from  8  to  12  cents. 

Bush  Fruits 

Raspberries  and  blackberries  are  somewhat  ex- 
tensively handled  in  our  American  markets,  but 
gooseberries  and  currants  have  nowhere  nearly  the 
comparative  importance  that  they  have  in  foreign 
markets.  Raspberries  and  blackberries  are  usually 
picked  and  handled  much  the  same  as  strawberries. 
They  are  almost  always  put  up  in  quart  boxes  and 
shipped  in  crates,  exactly  like  strawberries.  Pine  red- 
raspberries,  however,  are  more  frequently  packed  in 
small — say,  1-pint — boxes,  at  least  in  the  east.  In- 
deed, this  is  a  favorite  way  of  handling  them.  The 
fruit,  being  rather  soft,  handles  better  in  the  small 
packages,  and  being  rather  high  in  price  sells  better 
in  this  way.  Blackberries  are  never  sold  in  these 
pint  cups,  so  far  as  the  writer  knows. 

The  prices  paid  pickers  for  picking  raspberries  or 
blackberries  are  usually  a  trifle  less  than  for  picking 
strawberries.  They  run  from  one-half  cent  to  one 
and  a  half  cents  a  quart.  The  pickers  are  managed 
in  the  same  way,  and  the  accounts  kept  in  like  man- 
ner, usually  on  a  set  of  punch  cards. 

Dewberries  are  handled  in  all  ways  like  blackber- 
ries. In  fact,  when  they  reach  the  consumer  they  are 
blackberries.  The  retailers  never  call  them  dew- 
berries. 

Gooseberries,  when  sent  to  market  at  all,  are 
usually  shipped  in  the  same  quart  boxes,  put  up  in 
crates,  just  as  strawberries  are.  There  is  a  very  small 
sale  for  gooseberries  in  this  country,  and  it  seems  to 
be  growing  proportionately  smaller.  In  the  old 
world,  where  they  grow  gooseberries  of  a  different 


60          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

sort,  and  allow  them  to  ripen  fully  on  the  vines,  they 
are  one  of  the  favorite  fruits  in  the  markets. 

Currants  have  a  better  standing  in  this  country, 
being  used  largely  for  jelly,  and  even  for  dessert  by 
some  enterprising  housewives.  Currants,  too,  are 
usually  marketed  in  quart  boxes,  and  are  therefore 
usually  shipped  in  crates  like  strawberries.  Some- 
times, however,  they  are  shipped  in  3-lb.  or  5-lb. 
Climax  baskets  with  handles,  such  as  are  used  for 
grapes.  This  is  an  excellent  package,  if  the  fruit  is 
firm  enough  to  bear  shipment  without  crushing.  In 
local  markets  currants 'are  sold  in  all  sorts  of  pack- 
ages, and  in  fact  are  often  dealt  out  in  bulk  without 
any  package  at  all.  This  method  is  not  to  be  recom- 
mended in  any  case.  If  the  currants  are  worth  sell- 
ing they  are  worth  handling  well. 

Grapes 

There  are  a  great  many  different  kinds  of  grapes 
grown  in  this  country,  but  for  commercial  purposes 
the  Concord  may  be  considered  the  type  of  them  all, 
and  it  also  furnishes  a  large  majority  of  the  crop 
annually  sent  to  market.  Grapes  grown  under  glass 
have  to  be  handled  very  differently,  but  they  are  so 
seldom  grown  and  marketed  in  America  that  we  may 
fairly  disregard  them  in  this  article. 

In  ripening  the  fruit,  very  different  matters  have 
to  be  considered  in  different  parts  of  the  country,  and 
with  different  varieties.  In  the  southwestern  states 
care  has  to  be  taken  that  the  fruit  is  not  cooked  on 
the  vines,  or  not  prematurely  .ripened  by  the  exces- 
sive hot  sun.  In  the  northern  states  every  effort  has 
to  be  made  to  secure  all  the  sunlight  and  heat  pos- 
sible. In  some  cases  grapes  fail  to  ripen  altogether 
for  lack  of  sufficient  heat.  Different  varieties  differ 
greatly  in  this  respect'.  Catawba,  for  example,  re- 
quires much  more  heat  to  ripen  thoroughly  than 


PACKING  AND  MARKETING  FRUITS          61 

Delaware  does.  But  any  variety  should  be  thor- 
oughly ripened  on  the  vines.  Unripe  grapes  do  not 
ship  nor  keep  any  better  than  those  fairly  well 
ripened,  and  they  certainly  are  not  so  well  received 
by  customers.  One  of  the  best  ways  of  reducing  the 
demand  for  grapes  is  to  send  them  to  market  green 
and  sour.  In  the  northeastern  states  it  is  not  uncom- 
mon to  allow  the  fruit  to  hang  on  the  vines  after  the 
leaves  have  fallen,  thus  securing  ripe  grapes  when 
earlier  picking  would  yield  only  sour  and  unpala- 
table fruit. 

The  fruit  is  picked  with  small  scissors  or  pruning 
shears  made  for  the  purpose.  These  should  be  both 
small  and  strong.  The  scissors  used  for  thinning  out 
bunches  are  not  very  good  for  picking.  In  the  field 
the  grapes  are  picked  into  any  convenient  receptacle. 
Usually  the  best  thing  is  the  half  bushel  picking  bas- 
ket used  for  apples.  In  our  own  work  we  pick  grapes 
into  large  shallow  trays  which  nest  up  one  above, 
another,  leaving  a  shallow  air  space  between.  These 
trays  are  carried  with  the  grapes  in  them  into  the 
cooling  room.  The  fruit  remains  in  these  trays  from 
one  to  ten  days,  until  it  is  sorted  and  packed  for 
market.  This  method  is  used  only  on  a  compara- 
tively small  scale  and  for  a  local  market. 

Usually  the  baskets  as  picked  in  the  field  are  de- 
livered promptly  to  the  packing  house.  Here  the 
fruit  is  spread  out  on  a  narrow  table  before  the 
sorters  and  packers  (usually  girls  and  women),  by 
whom  it  is  picked  over  and  packed.  All  decayed, 
green  and  defective  berries  are  cut  out  with  sharp- 
pointed  scissors,  and  the  bunches  are  deftly  and 
snugly  stowed  in  the  baskets. 

The  package  which  is  almost  universally  used  for 
grapes  is  the  Climax  basket.  These  are  made  in 
various  sizes,  the  most  popular  being  3-lb.,  5-lb.,  8-lb. 


62          FRUIT-GROWER,    ST.    JOSEPH,    MO. 

and  10 -Ib.  Of  these  the  smaller  sizes  have  the  pref- 
rence.  We  have  found  3-lb  baskets  without  handles 
entirely  satisfactory  in  the  local  market,  but  they 
cannot  be  recommended  for  the  general  trade. 

Good  grapes,  ripened  without  too  much  heat,  yet 
hanging  on  the  vines  till  the  beginning  of  cool 
weather,  can  be  stored  almost  as  satisfactorily  as 
apples.  Hundreds  of  tons  are  held  in  "common"  and 
"cold"  storage  every  winter.  In  cold  storage  they 
should  have  a  temperature  of  33  degrees.  Houses 
for  common  storage  of  grapes  are  made  and  operated 
exactly  like  those  for  the  common  storage  of  apples. 


CONTENTS. 

Page 

Apple    Barrels    19 

Apple  Boxes    21 

Apple   Storage    33 

Bush    Fruits    59 

Cherries    52 

Comparison  of  Apple  Barrels 19 

Grapes    60 

Picking   Apples    11 

Packing    Apples     24 

Peaches    42 

Pears    51 

Plums 47 

Quinces    49 

Sorting    Apples    16 

Strawberries     54 

The  Fruit  Markets 7 

The   Strawberry  Package    57 


ST  JOSEPH.        MISSOURI 


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Tfie  FRUIT-GROWER  COMPANY 

ST.  JOSEPH,  MISSOURI 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW         ^  H  2 


AN  INITIAL  FINE  OF  25  CENTS 

WILL  BE  ASSESSED  FOR  FAILURE  TO  RETURN 
THIS  BOOK  ON  THE  DATE  DUE.  THE  PENALTY 
WILL  INCREASE  TO  SO  CENTS  ON  THE  FOURTH 
DAY  AND  TO  $1.OO  ON  THE  SEVENTH  DAY 
OVERDUE. 


MAY 

3  1934 

WAY 

4  1934 

*r> 

19o4 

if*       1  QO  yl 

*r^ 

^       1  %7O*f 

18  r  r 

ocpfn  i 

I\iJu  Lf   A- 

n  PER  ' 

OCT 

a  «R7, 

•*:EB  o  5  1988 

Photomount 
Pamphlet 

Binder 
Gay  lord  Bros. 

Makers 
Syracuse,  N.  Y. 

PAT.  JAN  21,  1908 


tfB  47607 


**•**** 


497931 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CAUFORNIA  LIBRARY 


